One Step Closer Away
by snuggled
Summary: Shino was always considered a prude by his friends...until he met TenTen. Now he's trying to figure out if there is anything to their relationship or if it's just one big game. Includes sexual situations, minor swearing, and one really bad hair cut.
1. Empty Glass

_Ha ha ha. I decided to start a ShinoTen fic because I was so restless. I really wanted to write something Naruto-related, but the ShikaTen one was on hold for a moment while I got my lovely friend (BETH) to help me out. See, I'm great at writing at everything, but there's only so much I can do with a show I don't watch. Therefore, I've commissioned her (since she's also making a comic out of it and will have to end up drawing it anyway) to come up with a fitting fight scene. I'll be writing it, still, but she'll be figuring out how it all plays out. I've got how it starts and how it's going to end, but she'll be working on everything in between. So, I've been restless and since she's coming over tomorrow (she's got no work today, so if I'm lucky, after my driving lessons, (19 and not able to drive yet. Sad.) she'll be able to stay the night and help devote some time to it with me. (She has no work tomorrow, you see.)_

_But, until then, you get this little fic to keep you company._

_I hope you all like it. They start out neutral and wind up HOT for each other. Ha ha._

_The title of this fic is named after a song by Tea Party (the best Canadian band I've heard…yet.). Speaking of Canada, there was this one girl in my sociology class (in high school) from Canada. She terrified me because I am so awkward when it comes to social situations, and you know how there's some people that everything they say sounds like an insult to you? She was one of those people. I never knew what to say to her, and I was sure she was a nice enough person, it's just she was so stand-offish I wound up too frightened to say anything to her…_

_Oh well. For all I know, she probably was a complete bitch. Whatever. I guess I'll just have to try harder when it comes to getting to know people._

_As for the chapter titles, they're also song titles from Tea Party. I think this one fits because this brings in the conflict between the two and Shino seems like the type of person who'd see not a glass half-full or half-empty but COMPLETELY empty._

_This fic is going to wind up a bit adult. Maybe. It all depends on what I want to do with it. Just as a precaution, if it winds up adult, they'll both be like…seventeen or something. I dunno. Just know they aren't children.  
_

_(I know. Everyone's used to my Naruto fanfics being nice and innocent, right? This one might turn out raunchy. Just a heads up.) _

_I've noticed I have an uncanny knack for refusing to go by the dictionary and making up my own words. Not really my own WORDS, but, rather, changing nouns to verbs and the like. For instance, this one takes the word "moss" and changed it to an adjective or even a verb. Thus, "mossed" would mean something along the lines of "the act of being covered in moss". It would be more suited for an adjective in the instance I use it in. Thus it's meaning would be, "covered in moss". Or, if you wanted to be especially fancy, you could say the definition was something like, "a light dusting of moss". Oooh! Fancy, fancy!_

_I mean, how annoying is it that "disgruntledly" isn't a word? I'd like to be like Shakespeare and bring some new words into existence. I'd never be able to do something as major as inventing the word "eyeball" or something like that, but I'd like to think that people would start using my phrases in conversation. Such as:_

"_Hey, Sharon, look at Kevin over there. See how he's banging on the keys of his keyboard disgruntledly? I wonder what crawled up his butt and died…let's go bother him!"_

"_Okay, Stacey! But the second he starts blurting out his feelings, we're outta there! I don't want to listen to him whine about how his internet decided to blow up on him! He's such a comper-complainer!"  
_

_Okay. So maybe comper isn't the best word. I was thinking something like a computer or something, but put in front of an adverb to become the act of involving oneself with a computer in some way. (Yeah. This probably makes no sense to any of you. I don't blame you. It makes no sense to me, either…)_

_I hope you enjoy this. Check out the songs, too. I'm totally pimping out my (one of my) favorite band(s). Because I know there's other people out there who'll fall in love with them. (The song that got me interested in Tea Party was Stargazer. And Stargazer isn't even as strong as their older stuff.)_

* * *

**One Step Closer Away**  
_Part One – Empty Glass_

Shino grumbled, sitting against the giant tree in the square and trying to make himself invisible. It wasn't too difficult; after all, his coat was the exact same colour as the mossed bark. Of course, he knew the one person he wanted to hide from would still find him, considering the fact that Kiba's nose was better than a bloodhound's. It would just take Kiba a bit longer ever since he'd left that bug-copy out there to throw him off his trail. The one thing he wanted to do was get at least a few minutes peace from the over-energized dog-person. It was like being comrades with a giant, oversized puppy. And Akamaru–that dog just wouldn't stop growing! He was now almost as tall as the Academy's roof on his hind legs!

The only good thing about his team was one person and one person only–Hinata. There wasn't anyone else he wanted to see more fulfilled than her. Why, she'd already gotten over her little crush with Naruto and was eyeing Kiba now! He figured if she liked him so much, she could keep him. Good riddance, he thought.

He heard a crunch behind him and turned his head, fearful Kiba had already found him. There were a few hurried whispers behind him and he paled. Crap. He'd forgotten this tree was frequented by people who wanted some place private…

"Shit, it's Shino…"

"Oh, who cares about him. Neji, I didn't bring you here to make out with you. I brought you here to break up with you."

Ah. TenTen and Neji were having a fight. It was better than them making out against the tree. That was the _last_ thing he wanted, considering the fact that this was the only place he could camouflage not only his body but also his odor for a little while: it was summer, and the tree was giving off more scents than a dump-site.

"What!? You're _breaking up_ with me!? Who the hell do you think you are!?"

"Look, Neji, it's great we've got some sort of chemistry…but that's about all we have."

"What are you talking about!? We're on the same team! We go out on missions together! I've saved your life too many times to count! How can you say all we have is chemistry, you bitch!?"

TenTen laughed, and Shino could hear something impact Neji; hear Neji make sort of an "oof!" sound. "Get off me, Neji. The next time you call me a bitch, I'm going assassin on your ass." She patted her hands together, tossing Neji away from the tree. "Now then, let's just break up and call it over. I'd rather this didn't interfere with our whole team effort thing going on. That's actually the main reason I don't think this can work between us. Sorry Neji. I'll see you on the next mission, maybe?"

"Yeah, sure. The next mission. I can see when I'm not wanted." Neji stormed off, hurt and embarrassed and pissed off all at once. He shot Shino a glare, daring him to tell someone what had just happened. Shino figured there was really nothing worthy of gossip going on, considering there hadn't been any gossip of the Neji and TenTen together going around in the first place. Besides…he wasn't the gossip type.

TenTen came out from behind the tree, leaning against it next to where Shino had taken his seat. She crossed her arms over her chest, shaking her head. She glanced at him, smiling a little. "Sorry you had to overhear that. I take it you're hiding from Kiba again?"

He looked up at her, puzzled as to why she could have ended a relationship without any remorse at all and how the hell she even knew why he was there. "Yeah…but…"

She waved her hand at him, laughing. "Come on, Shino! Everyone knows Kiba's been getting on your nerves lately, and I doubt you're the type to come here to make out."

He grumbled, cheeks turning slightly pink, though she couldn't see it. "I could if I wanted to…"

"But you don't. It's because you're a prude." She sat down next to him, observing all those layers. She cleared her throat, leaning over and messing with one of the buttons of his coat. "You know, it's hot out. I'm sure Kiba wouldn't even recognize you without all these coats on. It's not like any of us have seen your face since you turned fourteen."

He shuddered, flattening himself to the tree, knocking her hand away. "What are you doing!?"

She sighed, holding her hands away, showing him she wasn't trying anything. "I just thought…"

Shino glared. "No way! I'm not taking off my clothes! There's no need to be lewd!"

She laughed, wiping a tear from her eye. "Who's being lewd? I just thought Kiba wouldn't recognize you without all of those layers… You don't even have to take them off… Just as long as they aren't covering your face…"

Shino looked unconvinced, though she couldn't see any hint of emotion on his face because it was so covered. "I don't…"

"What, do you have a bad case of acne or something?"

He turned red. "It's nothing, okay!?"

She sighed, rolling her eyes. "Whatever you say, I suppose…" There was a long moment of silence before she looked at him, cocking her head a little, her hand underneath her chin. "…Me and Neji had been dating for about four months."

Shino looked at her, nonplussed. "Do you think I _care_ how long you and Neji were dating?"

TenTen shrugged her shoulders. "Most people are curious when they see something like that. I guess you're different." She looked away, turning pink. It was like talking to a brick wall…a giant brick wall with clothes all over it… Her curiosity got the best of her and she looked over, slightly amused.

"Are you a vampire?"

He looked at her, resisting the urge to hiss. "A _what_? Don't be ridiculous. If I were a vampire, I'd–"

"Cover yourself out in the sun, right?"

He turned to her, his jaw dropping, though she couldn't see it through his layers. "Wh-What?" Oh, she was _good_. "I am not a freaking vampire!" If there was one thing he'd been afraid people would call him due to the fact that he wore all these layers during the summer, it was the V-word.

She shrugged her shoulders again, laughing. Her hands moved to her ankles, clasping them, and she leaned over to him, too close for comfort. "Well then, why do you wear so many layers? It's obvious you're hiding something… Or are you so used to the heat by now that you don't even realize it's over 90 degrees?" She shrugged her shoulders. "I know how upset you get when people call you "Bug-boy". How'd you like to be called Bat-boy now? I'm sure that'd piss you off something fierce…Bat-boy."

He glared at her, standing up. "I am not a vampire, alright!? I wear these layers because I want to turn invisible! It's camouflage!"

TenTen looked at him, her face falling, her eyes flickering with something he couldn't place. She stood up, sighing. "Why would you want to turn _invisible_? You're pretty important to a lot of people, and I'm sure they'd enjoy seeing you more often…" She smiled, winking an eye at him. "Tell you what, you let me see what's behind those coats and I'll let you see what's behind mine…"

He stuttered, stepping back. "Okay, _now_ you're being lewd!"

She laughed, shrugging her shoulders. "Fine. You want it that way? I'll take your coats off by force and see what you're hiding. Except you won't get anything in return from me."

He sighed, removing his sunglasses. "Fine. We'll have it your way. But I get to see you with your hair down instead. Is that fine? It's not so much taking off your clothes than showing a different side of you most people don't see. That's about the same, without the implications involved."

She pouted a little, ignoring how intense his eyes were. "Fine. If you want to be a prude."

"I'm a _gentleman_. There's a difference."

"In this day and age? Guys like you are a dime a dozen."

"Don't you mean one in a million?"

She shrugged her shoulders, looking back at him. Their eyes met, and she flashed him a smile. "Yes. One in a million. Now then…let's see what you're hiding…"

He gulped, looking around. If there was one thing he wanted, it was for no one to see what he was hiding. He was embarrassed about it, and it was all his dad's fault. He removed the hood first, and she just about died. She burst out laughing, and his cheeks went even more red.

"You…you're…" She wheezed for a while, finally finding herself after a good two minutes. "Half of your head is shaved!"

He glared, running his hand through the side without stubble. It was deep brown and unruly, and he had liked it a lot. He was pissed when his dad had accidentally cut it a bit too short. He'd called it off, ignoring the fact that both sides weren't even. Instead of poking a mean comment, she went over to him, running a hand through the hair that was left, smiling.

"All you'd have to do would be to shave this side a little and you'd have a pretty sweet mohawk…"

He slapped her hand away, pouting. He liked his unruly hair the way it was. The _last_ thing he wanted was to try and look like some sort of punk. "It's good to see someone who doesn't find it something worthy of poking fun at…" He sighed, looking up at the sky. "And it wasn't my choice, either. My dad said he wanted to give me a haircut and cut it too short… I'm hoping it'll grow back pretty fast…"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't count on it…" She smiled again, grabbing the collar of his coat. "Now let's see what's behind Door Number Two!"

He spazzed, swiping her away and nearly falling backwards. "Wait, wait, wait! If you want to see my face, then–"

But she was too fast for him. Before he could even finish his sentence she was all over him, throwing off his overcoat and working on the buttons of the one underneath. She snickered a little, finding the task entertaining, but all it did was make him highly uncomfortable. It was bad enough he hated people getting within two feet of him…but now there was a girl _touching_ him! It was a major violation of his personal space!

She finally unbuttoned the entire thing, throwing it off as well. When she caught sight of his chin, she nearly fell over, laughing so hard. He grimaced, rubbing the chin-fuzz he had. It was practically a goatee. Another thing he could blame on his dad. Ever since he hit puberty and started growing facial hair, his father had insisted on him keeping it. He had said it made him more distinguished.

He thought it made him look like some kind of creepy mountain man, despite the fact that his father always cut it fairly short.

"That's…my Dad's fault again…"

After a good four minutes, she wiped a tear from her eye and placed a hand on his cheek, pursing her lips. "Oh…it's not so bad…" She smiled, rubbing a finger against the hair, poking her tongue out a little. "I think it makes you look distinguished…"

"Distinguished!?" He threw her off of him, crossing his arms over his chest. "I look like some kind of freakish _bear_!"

She chuckled again, leaning towards him, her hands in her pockets. "You don't look like a bear at all… Maybe a bear whose skin was taken to make a rug, but an extremely hairy one…not at all…" She smiled, putting a finger to her chin and looking up, deep in thought. "But…if it bothers you that much…you might as well shave it off… Unless you're the type of person who listens to everything their parents tell them…" She laughed again, her hand moving to her mouth. "You really _are_ a prude, aren't you?"

He glared, looking away. "I told you…I'm not a prude!"

"Oh yes, a _gentleman_, wasn't it?" She shrugged her shoulders. "I really don't see the difference. I'm sorry…" She put a hand back on his cheek, causing him to look back at her. "Listen, Shino…I'm sure if you…" She fought back laughter. "I'm sure if people saw this side of you more often, they'd–"

"Laugh? Call me even worse names than "Bug-boy" and "Mr. Cockroach"?"

She shook her head. "No. They'd probably recognize you easier…" She smiled. "I actually like this side of you better."

He couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Sure. I look like someone who got into a fight with a barber. But the worst part is the fact that my dad looks like a male stripper! And it doesn't help with the fact that he likes wearing next-to-nothing around the house! I can't even invite my friends over! I wish I were an orphan, for crying out loud!"

She narrowed her eyes. "Don't ever wish for that. At least people _know_ you have a dad. For all you know, I could actually _be_ an orphan."

He gulped, a wave of guilt washing over him. "A-Are you?"

She smiled, patting him on the shoulder. "Nope. But I got'cha, didn't I?"

He groaned, feeling stupid, until he heard the last thing he ever wanted to hear…ever.

"Akamaru! I smell him over here!"

Shino swore, running behind the tree, dragging TenTen along with him. They sat there in the shadows, listening to Kiba argue with himself. There were loud sniffing sounds, and Shino couldn't help but feel the hair on the back of his neck prickle and his very spine induce a shiver. He _hated_ that about Kiba. Sure, Kiba was his friend, but he didn't think he'd ever get over the fact that Kiba recognized him more by his _smell_ than by how he looked. Kiba wasn't even blind, damn it!

"Ah…here's his clothes…but where's…" There was a kick to the ground. "Ah, damn it! I thought for sure I'd find Shino here! Akamaru, it's just his clothes! Where could he have gone to!? He couldn't have gone far…his scent is so _strong_ around here…"

Shino's skin began to crawl when he heard what Kiba said next…and it wasn't the bugs.

"Maybe he's behind the tree… I'm sure his little bug pals would love it here…"

Shino gulped. The _last_ thing he wanted was for Kiba to see him like _this_. He would never hear the end of it! They'd be on a mission and Kiba would shoot something Hinata's way, something she wouldn't get but he knew his friend would. He'd bug him about it until it wasn't funny anymore and then some!

That's when TenTen shot up, walking back around. He stood, trying to stop her, but she slapped his hand away, shooting him a look. He sat back down, hoping she'd come up with a good cover story.

"Hey, Kiba…"

Kiba's response was instant–he swarmed her, sniffing her hair and clothes. "Hey, TenTen!" _Sniff Sniff_. "Why do you smell like Shino so much!? Is he back there or something… …Oooooh…I think I get it…" Shino could just _see_ the smile on Kiba's face. "I see what's going on… Why _do_ you smell like Shino, TenTen? " He chuckled. "I see it all clearly…the tree…the smell…the fact that Shino's clothes are right here in the middle of the street… I'll…leave you two alone…"

Shino's ears perked when he heard Akamaru bark, heard the dog's paws leave the ground in a giant leap. TenTen walked back behind the tree, looking stunned.

"Wow. I didn't even have to come up with something…" She laughed, nudging Shino's shoulder with her knee. "It's safe to come out now, Shino…" He sat there, refusing. Knowing Kiba, he'd probably do something stupid and come back to see if his friend was getting any.

Sure enough, they heard something up from a roof nearby, very faintly.

"I wonder if Shino's actually getting some… He seems like such a prude, right Akamaru?"

There was a bark, and Shino swore again, jumping into a bush. TenTen looked up in time to see Akamaru and Kiba's heads poke out from the roof, looking down into the shadows of the tree. Kiba swore, standing up. He'd been caught peeking!

TenTen hid a smile, narrowing her eyes to seem angry. "Do you _mind_?"

Kiba jumped onto Akamaru, swearing a blue streak. "Come on! Let's get out of here! She's onto us!"

The dog and dog duo leapt to safety, and TenTen burst out laughing. Shino crept out of the bushes, looking at her and gulping. "They're gone?"

TenTen waved her hand. "Of course. I wonder what Kiba will ask you tomorrow, though…" She smiled at Shino, something flickering in her eyes. Shino just gave her a weird look, standing up and going out for his clothes. She watched him, crossing her arms over her chest. "You know…if you changed your diet and changed what you used to get clean…in two weeks Kiba probably wouldn't even recognize your scent…"

Shino groaned, putting his sunglasses back on and picking up his undercoat and overcoat. "It's not that simple, TenTen. Kiba's nose is like a dog's nose. Just doing that won't change how you smell … The only thing you'd succeed in would be to confuse him for a day or two. Trust me–I've tried that already."

She shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever you say. I'm sure you know him better than I do. Now, about our deal…"

Shino groaned, going back to the tree, all covered up again. "Sorry, but I'll have to pass. All I want to do right now is go home and try to take a break from this hectic day."

She shrugged, walking away. "Whatever you say… But…I'm always open if you're interested." She looked back at him, winking, before turning back around and leaving.

He gave her a look then went his separate way. TenTen was such a strange girl…so why was he interested in getting to know her? He was certain doing that would only cause him grief in the long run.


	2. Touch

_The first chapter sucked. It wasn't like I had been planning it to turn it into at all. I had wanted to write more of a monologue on how conflicted Shino was, but that never got put into that chapter._

_Which is why I'm putting it in this chapter, to start it off!_

_I'm going to have to warn you, if you've read my Death Note Matt/Mello fic, _Runner's High_, you'll be familiar with how I decided to start it off–with a dream. It might not be as vulgar as in _Runner's High_, because I want to keep it at least a little more tasteful, but it might get a bit raunchy, depending on how you view and use that term._

_The song title this chapter's named after is "Touch", respectively. I recommend the song to you guys. I can't help but sing along with it. If you like metal-sounding songs, you'd probably like this song. Check it out on the youtube. :D _

_I'm sure a lot of people are disappointed by how fugly I made Shino in this story. I have to disagree. I think I made him cute. xD I think it's nice to see stories in which the male characters aren't all prettier than women and sexy as hell. Which is why I think his whole goatee, half-hair combo is adorable. And fitting for Shino, oddly enough. I mean, can you see Shino being the sexiest character in that show? I think the only thing he'd be able to make sexy would be his facial features and eyes. That'd be about it. Other than that, a goatee and half-hair would fit him perfectly! Not all guys can be how you want them to be, and Shino is no exception._

_(Even though I laugh every time I try to imagine to what he'd end up looking like. Can you imagine if his hair was naturally like that? How his _children_ would look? Or better yet, if TenTen's hair was naturally in the buns? They'd have bald children with the only hair on their heads being those dang buns!)_

_Hopefully this new image of him will tickle your fancies and be a bit easier on your minds' eyes. (He's a WILD MAN. Ha ha.)  
_

* * *

**One Step Closer Away  
**_Part Two–Touch_

He'd been having such a nice dream, that is, until _she_ appeared. The way she moved, the way she looked at him–it was setting him on edge! He was trying his best, using this lucid dream to its full potential, trying his hardest to keep it clean. That is, until she let her hair down. She let it down, running her hand through her hair and tossing her head back, topping off the entire image with a smile.

Needless to say, it didn't stay clean much longer after that.

Right in the middle of watching her chest rise and fall beneath him, there was the sound of bullhorn blaring, and he shot up, rubbing the side of his head. He groaned, realizing he was rubbing his hairless side, and he shot a glare over to his father, who was looking proud of himself.

"Shino, it's time to wake up! You've got a big day ahead of you!"

Shino groaned, finding his hair this time and running his fingers through it. "Dad…I hardly do anything these days after our training ended for the most part. Kurenai-sensei hardly even makes us go on missions… Can't I sleep in?"

"Who's TenTen?"

His eyes widened, his cheeks flared. "Wh-What!?"

His father gave him a cool smile, clearing his throat suggestively. "You were saying her name in your sleep…"

Shino groaned again, wiping his hand over his face this time. "Shit. Dad, TenTen's…just…aggravating. It's not really important and I'm not really interested in her…"

His father's eyebrows rose and he stood up, leaving the room. "Well…you sure _sounded_ interested… Come on, breakfast is on the table."

Shino grimaced, knowing his father's cooking was absolute garbage. Ever since his mother had died, his father had been trying to fill the void she left behind and failing miserably. He cooked like a well-seasoned screw-up, and he gave advice like someone who tried too hard, and he tried his hardest to be there for him by cutting his hair–something his mother was actually _good_ at. And worst of all–he kept trying to make up for his mother's touchy-feely nature.

The only things he was glad about his mother not being around anymore were instances like _this_. It was so much easier having a dad to talk to than a mom when these sort of…disturbances…popped up. And pop up they did. He'd even caught himself dreaming about Tsunade-sama, for crying out loud!

He didn't even know why he was dreaming about TenTen. He dreamed about most of the girls–even Hinata had fallen prey to his lecherous male mind. But this was the first instance of TenTen. Usually he didn't even give her a second glance. He stood, off to go take a cold shower.

As he showered, he eyed his father's razor with interest. After what felt like forever, he got out of the shower and went to the sink. "It's not anything she said, Shino…" he whispered. "It's not anything she said; you just thought it was worth a try is all! You're not trying to impress her; she's a bit crazy in the head and likes teasing you… Is there a chance that you're trying to impress her? Of course not. She's not even worth the time of day. So there."

And he did it.

He walked out of the bathroom all dressed in his normal pants and a plain black t-shirt, off across the house to the kitchen. His father was burning whatever it was–was that rice and eggs?—and Shino couldn't help but wonder if his dad had woken him up in the middle of that dream on purpose. He couldn't blame him–any more of that and he would've gone crazy.

His dad took one look at him and dropped the spoon in his hands. "Shino…what did you do to your hair?"

Shino groaned, pumping himself up again. It wasn't for her. Besides, she wouldn't even _know_ about it. She wouldn't see it, just like he wouldn't see her all day. "It's called a mohawk, dad. I just felt it would look better than what it was before. At least it looks like an actual style, now…"

His father's jaw dropped. "Shino, I thought you liked your hair the way it was! You said you didn't want me to try and fix it!"

Shino nodded, sitting down at the table. "Exactly. I was afraid you'd mess it up and I'd have to shave the whole thing off… I don't want to walk around bald…"

His father cleared his throat, trying to assert his control over the boy. "Right…but you're still not allowed to do anything to your facial hair! That's my job, as your personal barber…"

He sighed, putting his head in his hands. "I know, Dad… I wasn't planning on getting rid of the goatee…" He sighed, looking at the food. "What are we eating today?"

His father looked at the dish, sighing. "Well…the technical term is eggs with rice, but ash-flavored garbage will work just as well…"

Shino sighed, looking at him. "I suppose take-out would also work?"

His father nodded, tossing the food in the garbage. "Right. That would work just as well, too…" He went over to his son, holding out his arms. "You're such a smart boy."

Shino groaned, feeling stupid again. "Dad…you don't have to do that… I know I'm smart without you showering me with hugs…"

"So be it." His father turned around, not looking nearly as hurt as one who enjoyed being touchy-feely would have looked. "It's times like these I wish your mother was still here with us…"

Shino nodded. "Yeah. Take-out's gotten old…"

His father started to laugh. "That's true. It's gotten very old. How about we go _out_ to eat this time. How does Korean barbeque sound?"

Shino looked at him, standing to go find his coat. "Only Chouji eats Korean barbeque for breakfast, Dad…"

His father gave him a bright smile. "All the better! I haven't spoken to his father in a while. Hopefully we'll meet up with him there!"

––––––––––––––––

That's how he ended up here…in this dump. It looked tacky: the walls were all deep green, the floor a puke yellow. It made him want to barf just looking at it. And the food! Why had his father picked _this_ place of all places!? They weren't in any money trouble! THis wasn't the Korean barbeque place, either! Where the hell were they? Were they still in _Konoha_?

"Shino, I don't see why you feel the need to wear all those layers. You should be like your old man and show off your chest. The ladies love chest hair!"

Shino sighed, trying to ignore it. If there was one thing he hated, it was the fact that his father acted like he was on the market at all hours of the day…despite the fact that he wasn't planning on settling down with another woman any time soon. His father patted him on the back again, clamping his hand over a shoulder.

"Shino, it's time you found a girl. I'm sorry, son, but these dreams have become more frequent lately. You're getting older now, and I think you should start dating. You have my permission."

Shino glared. If he'd had any interest, he'd have asked for permission years ago. The simple fact of the matter was he had too many things on his mind right now to worry about girls. He had Hinata to help support, Kiba to get under control…not to mention there was that whole…bug…issue…that made girls view him like a walking case of crabs… In short, he didn't see himself on the market at the moment.

"Can I help you?"

The two men looked up to see TenTen standing there, grinning, behind the counter. She had her hair pulled back into a single bun for once, and she was wearing an apron. She locked eyes with Shino's, through his sunglasses, and winked.

"I believe you get a discount for being an acquaintance, Shino."

His father looked at him, pleased and surprised all at once. "Well, Shino, why don't you introduce me to your friend?"

Shino grumbled, knowing this wouldn't end well.

She smiled, holding her hand out to him. "You must be Shino's father." He took it, giving her a nice, firm handshake. "I'm TenTen."

His father's eyebrows rose, and a smile soon graced his lips. He didn't let go of TenTen's hand; instead, he turned to Shino, that smile turning almost humored. "Oh, so _you're_ the TenTen my son was talking about last night…"

Shino turned beet red, putting a hand to his face and groaning. "Dad…_please_ don't do what I think you're going to–"

"TenTen, how would you like to try dating my son?"

TenTen laughed, grabbing her hand away from his father and putting it over Shino's, catching his eyes through those sunglasses. "I'm sorry, but I think Shino is…nice…but I prefer the boys I date to have a full head of hair." She chuckled to herself and set herself to going over and getting an elderly couple's order.

His father looked at him, puzzled. "Now how did she know you have only half a head of hair? You're covered head to foot in coats!"

"It's a long story…and I'd prefer not to talk about it…"

He shot Shino a sly smile, twiddling his thumbs. "Hmmm…aggravating and not really important, eh? I see what you're saying, son."

Shino sighed, glad to see he finally saw things his way.

"You're a prude!

He gaped, turning back to his father and whispering hoarsely. "Dad! I am not a prude! I'm a gentleman! There's a big difference!"

His father quirked a brow. "Gentleman or not, you'll never get a chance to act like one or the other if you keep up with this celibate act…" He turned to him, serious. "Shino, I really think you should try dating."

"I'm almost eighteen, Dad, I don't need you telling me what to do."

"Eighteen and you haven't started dating, Shino? For someone who claims they aren't a prude…you sure do act like one." His eyes shot back to TenTen, who was looking immensely amused. She smiled, clearing her throat and turning to his father, eyeing the boy out of the corner of her eye.

"Anything I can help you with?" She winked, and Shino just about lost it and bolted for the door.

"Eggs with rice. Two orders."

She nodded, glancing at Shino and biting her lip. "I suppose he's ordering for you?" When he simply nodded, she leaned back a bit, crossing her arms over her chest. "Anything I can get to quench your thirst, or are you thinking about going the rest of the day dry?"

He narrowed his eyes, knowing what she was playing. That was the one thing that was the most help–he knew what TenTen was getting at and how to resist it. He was just about sick of her innuendos, though. "A glass of milk."

Se smiled, glad he'd set himself up. She leaned over, quirking a brow. "I think I can help you with that. But babies go into the back room for breast-feeding…"

He glared, standing up. "Geez! What is wrong with your head? Is everything one big sexual innuendo to you? Dad, cut it back to one order. I've lost my appetite!" As he stormed out of the building, he couldn't help but get the faint sound of her laughter out of his head. What was her _problem_? Could she not see he wasn't _interested_??

He stormed away, throwing his hood down and taking his sunglasses off. He removed his two coats, folding them over his arm. She was even wrong about him being more recognizable without his coats on. He'd show her; no one would recognize him and he'd just turn invisible.

He stormed by the tree, stopping for a moment when he saw Hinata leaning against it, looking a bit upset. He went to her, concerned. "Hinata?"

She turned her eyes to him and her demeanor changed completely. Instead of it becoming slightly relieved, it became only more distraught. Her eyebrows rose, she looked at him anxiously. "Y-Yes? H-How do you know my name?"

He cleared his throat: it was a success. "Get out of here. You're violating…er…tree-leaning laws…"

She accepted the lie, leaving promptly. He didn't really care why she was upset right now. He'd deal with that later. Now, he'd just settle for becoming invisible. He went behind the tree, taking a spot in the cool shade. Tossing his coats to the side and folding his sunglasses up and placing them on the pile of clothes, he settled in, eager for a long moment where he could be absolutely alone.

That moment was not long at any length. What he'd hoped would be a five hour stretch of complete relaxation only turned out to be three hours. And then, lo and behold, the bringer of his stress padded up next to him. His eyes had been closed, and he'd heard someone approach, but he refused to take any notice. That is, until she whispered right in his ear.

"I thought I'd find you here."

He shot up like a rocket, ready to bolt. She looked up at him, looking worse for wear, and he looked back down at her, expecting her to try something. She didn't; instead, she sat back against the tree, sighing a little.

"Oh, don't be like that, Shino. You know I was just messing with you back there. How could I not? You were in front of your father. That's like gold for me…"

He eyed her a moment, seeing how she didn't seem to have any ulterior motives, and took a spot beside her, warily. "…Why were you working there, anyway?"

She shrugged, putting the back of her hand to her forehead tiredly. "Free food." He gave her a look, and she glanced at him, her tone breaching sarcastic. "The wonderful dental plan and flexible work hours. Why do you think? For the _money_, of course."

She sighed again, leaning forward and stretching her back muscles. "Sorry. Don't mean to be rude. I'm just tired and your father refused to pay so he worked it off by working in the kitchen washing dishes. In the end, the manager figured it would be worth more to just let him have the free meal than to let him handle anymore of the bowls, since they shattered too easily. Your father's a bit of a pain. I'm starting to see why you get so aggravated with him." She looked up at him, smiling a little. "By the way, I see you took my advice. Your hair looks nicer now."

He turned red, looking away. "I didn't take your advice. I just figured it'd look nicer."

"Well, it does…"

She started undoing the tie in her hair, and he looked back at her, stuttering. "Wh-What are you doing?"

She gave him a look, struggling with the tie. "I'm letting my hair down. What does it look like I'm doing? It feels like my skin's all stretched I had it pulled too tight. I have a pounding head-ache and this hair isn't helping at any rate. She got it down, giving a sigh of relief and running her hand through it, getting the kinks out. She flipped it back, running her hand through it again, her head feeling ten times less like someone was pounding on it with a hammer. He grabbed her arm, biting his lip.

"What are you doing?"

He leaned over, crushing their lips together, his hands reaching for her hair, sturggling to find something to hold onto. She received him eagerly, and soon he was probing her mouth, getting a taste of her. Finally, after what felt like forever, he pulled back, taking a deep breath. She stared at him, looking for words, but found none.

He went red, and twisted his fingers together anxiously. "Uh…so…"

Without even hearing him, she gasped, sitting up straight. "Oh my god! What time is it??" For a while she sat there, surveying her surrounding, until she realized she probably had to go. She leaned over, capturing his lips in a kiss, before standing to her feet. "I have to go." She looked at him, giving him a wink. "You should surprise me like that more often. Same place, same time."

And like that, she ran off. He looked at his hands, finding a few strands of her shoulder-length brown hair tangled between his fingers. He closed his fist, gritting his teeth.

Damn it. What had he gotten himself into?


	3. Luxuria

_Sorry it took so long. I got involved with another fic and forgot about this one, the writing not coming to me easily. And then…after reading tons upon tons of KibaKankurou smut, the urge to write this story suddenly came back. Talk about strange, right? Ha ha. I don't know where the connection came in…but magically it worked and lit some sort of creative spark… ShinoTen from KibaKank. How the hell…?_

_I am very upset about that last chapter. There was no PASSION. No PIZAZZ. NOTHING!_

_All of that building up for the big moment and what do you get? TWO SENTENCES. Nice. I should be arrested._

_I wanted this fic to be sexy, but now it really only looks like it'll be known for its humor and internal analyzation. Apparently I can do either really clean stuff or really dirty stuff. Nothing in between for me. As ALWAYS. Ugh._

_Hope you shits enjoy this chapter. –angry face-_

_Ah…but this was semi-difficult to add in a completely new pairing into this fic. To be honest…I'm just not that big of a fan of KibaHina… (ShinoHina is my preference when it comes to her paired up with either of the two of them. More-so than even NaruHina, and, yes, even a little more than ChouHina.)_

_So…be prepared to barely hear about it for the rest of the fic._

_This sex scene sucks noodles._

* * *

**One Step Closer Away**  
_Part Three–Luxuria_

He couldn't keep his eyes off her hair splayed out on the pillows beneath him. Her breathing had increased, and her fingers were digging into the back of his neck. With each moan, he felt his self-control slipping away. He bent down, administering kisses, feeling her supple skin beneath his lips with much care and deliberation.

"Shino…"

She moaned his name, and his kisses sped up.

"Shino… …Shino, wake up, damn it!"

He felt a sharp pain in the back of his head and shot up, fisting the sheets in his hands and glaring daggers at the culprit. "D-Dad…"

His father's cheeks were bright red, and he was pointing at him threateningly, his eyes–why the hell wasn't he wearing his sunglasses like normal?–almost desperate. "Shino, you're having another one of those dreams, and I'm having a guest over in _ten_ minutes! I can't even walk through the house without hearing you! Come on, boy, go out and get a girlfriend already! I've had enough of these dreams of yours!"

He glared, rubbing the streak of hair at the top of his head absentmindedly. "Yeah, well it's not as easy as you might think, considering the fact that I've got _bugs living inside of me_."

His father laughed, crossing his hands over his chest, nodding his head. He looked at him, narrowing his eyes, clearly offended. "And what do you mean by that, Shino? You think your old man didn't have problems, is _that_ it? Well, Shino, if it's so hard for someone with bugs living inside them, how do you explain how you were born, hmmm?"

Shino grumbled, feeling bad now. He rubbed the side of his head, feeling the skin stretch and snap back in place with ease, and looked at the sheets, which were sticky and wet. It never even occurred to him that his father was probably going through the same thing as him, now that he acted like he wanted to go out and scour the market. Maybe his assuming his father was all talk had been wrong? He needed to apologize, if that were the case.

"…Sorry."

"You better be sorry, Shino. I have a guest coming over that is very important, so take a shower and get out of this house. You can take care of your sheets later."

Shino stood, sighing. "Alright…" He went to the door.

"Oh, and Shino?"

Shino turned looking his father square in the eye. "What is it?"

"If you can't get a girlfriend, the least you could do would be to get laid to relieve any tension. Strippers and prostitutes don't have to know about the bugs. There's a brothel on the other side of the village, if you need."

Shino's cheeks flared up and he stormed to the washroom. He couldn't even _believe_ his dad was saying something like that! He hated his father sometimes…he really did! After a nice, cold shower and him trying to come up with something that wouldn't set him off again–he finally settled on picturing Kiba going at it with some random dog and that immediately killed his sex drive–, he finally stepped out.

He went to the kitchen, wearing only the towel he'd wrapped around his waist, and grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge. He took a big swig of it, making sure to backwash. That would teach his dad to say lewd things like that… He turned around, and the carton dropped from his hand.

There was a _woman_ sitting at the table!

She was stunning, all blonde and curvy. Her eyes were dancing with delight, and she looked at him, pursing her lips. "Sorry, did I surprise you?"

His jaw dropped, and two bugs went scurrying out his nose–one from each nostril–and into his ears. Who the hell was _she_!? What was she doing in his house!? His head was a buzz of activity, quite literally. He couldn't even hear himself think through the buzzing in his ears. The bugs were going stir crazy in there!

He…He couldn't really blame them. This woman was quite the eye candy. The perfect hourglass shape–36-24-36, easy. Her hair put Ino's to shame, trailing down the side of her hair with the perfect amount of waves caressing her perfect tan.

She giggled. "Oh, I suppose I did… Tell me, Shino…do you like this TenTen girl?"

He took a step back, suddenly wary of this entire situation. "Woooooah. How do you know about all of that? How do you know my _name_??"

The woman giggled…_again_. "I'm your conscience… Shino, if you keep having these dreams about her, I strongly suggest you go for them. Who knows? She might be the one…"

He stuttered, and the towel nearly dropped. His hand shot to it, holding it up there, though now his backside was completely exposed. The woman's eyes widened, and her cheeks tinged pink. She put a hand to her mouth, stifling a laugh.

He dashed out of the room, back to his bedroom. He had to get out this house; it was starting to make him delirious! And why the hell was his conscience such a ditz, anyway!? He was smarter than that, damn it!

The woman sighed, pouting a little. "Was that fine?"

His dad came out from behind the door outside. "Yes, that was perfect. I think he'll pursue her now… Anything to get him out of the house… Honestly, he's just like I was when I was his age…although…to be honest…I was actually in my twenties by the time I started dating. Now…let's go take a walk so he doesn't see me talking to you."

"Well, shouldn't he know about me by _now_?" She asked quizzically, a bit huffy, making sure to splay her fingers out in a little wave toward the man, the ring on her finger glinting under the light, teasingly, reaffirming his determination to get Shino hooked up with someone.

"Not yet. Not until _he_ starts dating. He'd feel terrible otherwise…"

If he could, he'd get his son with TenTen. That girl was perfect for him, despite the fact that he didn't seem to see it at the moment. Shino probably didn't notice it yet, but, being his father and…because Shino was particularly vocal in his sleep, he had learned a few things about his son he was fairly certain Shino hadn't ever considered before–

Shino never fantasized about the same girl twice.

–––––––––––––––––––––

Shino quickly changed, shuddering all the while. First there was a strange woman in the house, now– He turned. Yes, that was it! His father said he'd be having a guest over! It was just like his dad to pull a stunt like _that_.

He crept from his bedroom and went to the kitchen. His heart pounded as he stood behind the sliding door, terrified of what he'd find. Swallowing all hesitance, he slid the door open and looked inside.

Empty.

The carton of milk was still on the ground, the fridge was still ajar… He walked in, closing the fridge and cleaning up the milk. There was a quiet murmur from the sitting room, and he went to go check it out. He peeked in, surprised to see his dad there talking to an elderly couple. It was the couple from the restaurant the other day!

He went over, looking at them. "Uh…Dad?"

His father glanced up at him before going back to his conversation. They were talking about the current state of the world or something, so Shino left, politely dismissing himself and apologizing for the interruption.

He went to the front door, listening to the conversation in the living room. They didn't even act as if they'd acknowledged him. He frowned, unsure. He'd thought his dad would do something to get him dating, and that woman… She certainly seemed like someone his father would get to help him… He sighed, straightening his collar and pulling out his sunglasses.

Maybe his father _wasn't_ playing tricks with his head…

He left, shutting the front door behind him, and the three adults in the sitting room collapsed into a swarm of bugs.

––––––––––––––––––

He approached the tree warily, almost afraid to see that brown hair teasing him from around the trunk. What he found instead was the Hyuuga near the tree like she had been the previous day, her eyes looking just as bleary as before. To his slight amusement, he noticed she wasn't leaning against the tree anymore.

The second she heard him, her eyes turned upward and her mouth opened. "Ah, Sh-Shino!" She shifted uncomfortably, making her way over toward him and meeting him halfway. "…I…um…you didn't show up yesterday…so…I just…left…"

Shino blinked, though she couldn't see it through his sunglasses, and shoved his hands further into his pockets, tapping the toe of his sandal against the dirt beneath his feet absentmindedly. "…Something wrong?"

She nodded her head, and Shino tilted his head in the direction of the market. "I'll treat you to some breakfast." He turned to leave, but her voice stopped him.

"Ah…um…Sh-Shino…"

"Hm?" He turned and looked back at her, surprised she looked puzzled and slightly sheepish. She smiled a little, scratching at her head nervously, her face going bright red, like she didn't want to be the one to have to tell him what she was about to tell him.

"…It's…It's nearly noon…"

He went slightly pink, desperately wanting to claw at the hair at the top of his head, but that hood wouldn't allow him. Instead, he just clenched his fists in his pockets. "…Oh. I guess I slept in too late again." There was a silence that formed between the two, but Shino didn't mind it at all. It was a lot less awkward than the silences that formed with Kiba. There were a lot of silences between him and Hinata; Kiba, not so much. After a while, he simply nodded his head.

"I'll treat you to some lunch, then."

She nodded her head as he started to walk off, and she followed him, looking behind her at the tree anxiously. She'd known the tree was, reportedly, a great place to make out for being so private…but she hadn't ever come across someone crying behind there before.

She swallowed and jogged a little to keep up with Shino, whose long strides had already taken him quite a few feet in front of her. She hoped TenTen would feel better soon, whatever was bothering her.

––––––––––––––––––

Shino picked at his food. It wasn't that he wasn't hungry… He was actually starving. He just…didn't really feel like eating. He looked over, disappointed to see Hinata was forcing herself to eat the food he'd bought her. She obviously didn't feel like eating much, either. He placed his chopsticks down, not even bothering to force another bite of rice past his lips.

"…You don't have to eat that if you don't want to. I won't mind if you don't eat the rest of it."

Hinata looked up at him, her cheeks darkening. "Uh…well…" She forced herself to swallow a noodle, slurping at the rest at the edge of her bowl, swirled around her chopsticks, with dreary enthusiasm. "…It…It would be rude, Sh-Shino…"

As much as he enjoyed talking with her about nothing at times…he really just wanted to cut to the chase at the moment.

"What's bothering you enough that made you search me out?"

She dropped the chopsticks and they landed in the bowl, but she could care less about her manners at the moment. Her face flushed the brightest crimson he'd ever seen it–hell, even Naruto couldn't get that blush out of her when she'd been crushing on him–and she pointed her index fingers together, her eyes lowering to the table, away from his gaze.

"…O-Oh…w-well…I just…I…don't think I…" Tears pricked at her eyelashes, feeling more flustered than she had in a long time. She'd gotten _better_ at speaking her mind at the years, hadn't she? And now it had to rear its ugly head, in front of Shino…her last chance. "…I…I d-don't think…I…" She drew her hands up to her cheeks, actually trying to hide her face in her embarrassment, and the words came tumbling out.

"I don't think I have a chance with Kiba."

Shino stared at her, his mouth opening to say something before it abruptly closed. Well…she'd really had a major fall, hadn't she? It was obvious she had more of a chance with him than any of the other girls in Konoha. Since he often had a habit of taking his and Kiba's watch whenever they'd gone out on all those missions in the past, he could say, with absolute certainty, that there was no one else on the dog-nin's mind but her. He'd overheard Kiba mutter her name under his breath countless times in his sleep, over the course of at least three years, give or take a few. It was a terrible habit for a ninja to have–talking in one's sleep almost every single night, almost the entire time one was asleep–but Kiba had that habit bad. A fluttering 'I love you' spouted from his lips almost consistently after he'd say her name, and Akamaru had gotten into the habit of sleeping around his partner's face to muffle the man's sleep-talking to avoid detection when the situation was dangerous enough to require absolute silence.

"What makes you think that?"

"…He acts exactly the same around me as he always has…" She replied sadly.

Shino snorted, loud enough for her to look up at him in surprise, and the bug-nin shrugged his shoulders. "Well…did it ever occur to you he's liked since we were kids? Maybe that's why he acts the same around you…"

Her voice shuddered, and she stood abruptly, knocking the chair to the ground, her white eyes widening. He couldn't be sure, but judging by the way her cheeks were puffed out and her eyes were looking at him desperately, she wanted to ask him if that was true but was afraid she'd faint if she did and got an answer she was hoping for.

Shino smiled, though she couldn't see it. "He really likes–" A bug scurried out of his navel and disappeared into a hole that appeared at the base of his spine. The bug-nin twitched visibly, his head immediately swinging to the left as Akamaru came pouncing from seemingly thin-air. He landed, paws slamming into the ground with a crunch, and a thick cloud of dust immediately radiated from the impact sight, blearing Hinata's eyes and causing her to start to cough uncontrollably. Shino did not have that problem, and he had to admit that nasty habit of the dog's was actually the first thing that prompted him to wear this many layers, the facial hair being a close second. And the third…just him wishing he could turn invisible.

Kiba jumped off the dog, thrusting his hands into the air dramatically. "Hey, guys!" He leaned over, patting Hinata's back as she started on another coughing fit, and the dog nuzzled her back at the same time. "I could smell your nervousness a mile away, Hinata! Why so tense??"

"…K…" She coughed, finally getting all of that out of her system. "K…K-Kiba…" She went red, pointing her fingers together. Her eyes averted from his gaze, and the heat rose in her cheeks.

She glanced at Shino, who was just staring at her. She couldn't see his expression at all…but she knew the one he was giving her. She _knew_. It was the same one he'd given her before her fight with Neji in the chuunin exams. The same one he'd been giving her practically every time she started to feel as if she was helpless. She had to use the Byakugan…just to see exactly what that look was. She peered through the layers, peered through the sunglasses, memorized that look in his eyes, that tiny, ever-so-slight, curve at the corner of his lips. Her eyes softened as she finally, _finally_ witnessed that look–that look that absolutely _knew_, without a single doubt in his mind, that she could really do anything she put her mind to.

She turned back to Kiba, her voice stronger, more sure of herself. "Kiba." Her eyes locked with his, and that's when she noticed how his cheeks started to flush pink. She stood, biting her lip before she reached out and grabbed his hand, just as bewildered as he was with how forward she was being. "H-How long have you liked me?"

Kiba's eyes widened and the flush in his face reddened further to the point that those markings on his cheeks disappeared as the blush overtook them. It wasn't long before his entire face went red, and he opened his mouth to speak.

He didn't have time to answer her question before he fainted right on the spot.

Shino actually tore the sunglasses off his face, standing sharply and staring at the pair, completely unable to believe what had just happened. Hinata put her hands to her cheeks. "O-Oh no! I broke him!" For the second time ever, Shino slammed his fists down on the table in a fit of uncontrollable laughter that the bugs couldn't even help him fight off.

––––––––––––––––––

He left the two back in the market, instead deciding to take a gander at the new collection of books he'd seen a local bookstore that sold the best anthologies. He'd already collected countless numbers of different anthologies on annelids and arthropods, and, naturally, insects. He was hoping they had some seriously well-ordered encyclopedias that brought up things he hadn't learned from either experience or in the anthologies back home.

It took him a while to get to the bookstore, but by the time he got here, he caught sight of Mrs. 36-24-36 herself, looking through a rather difficult tactical guide for Go–one he'd caught Shikamaru reading on more than one occasion. His jaw just about dropped, and the woman's face brightened, as if she suddenly _understood_ something she'd read. She…She wasn't a ditz at all…

Hell, she wasn't his _conscience_!

His father strode over toward her, pointing at the book and looking at her. She looked back up at him with a grin on her face, and she reached up and stroked the side of his cheek exposed from the collar of his coat.

Shino went stiff, staring at the pair, before spotting the glint of gold–the ring on her finger. There was a flurry inside him, all of the kikaichuu buzzing around wildly, sensing his anger and horror and acting on it immediately.

"WHAT?"

The pair turned and looked, and he could swear he heard that same rumble he heard in his head erupt from his father. He stormed over, staring at the woman, staring her right in the eye though she couldn't see his eyes through those sunglasses.

"Who are _you_? Why are you talking with my father??"

She looked at his father, her face lowering, unsure how to respond. Shino's father grabbed his arm, forcing him to look at him. "Sh-Shino. There's no need to get upset, now."

"She has a ring on her finger, Dad." His voice lowered, though that didn't stop the kikaichuu inside him from quickening as his heartbeat did.

His father fell silent, unable to say anything to that, and bugs went flying out of pores popping up in Shino's skin, swarming over his body as he fought to keep himself under control. Forget anger; forget horror. This was outright _betrayal_. Betrayal against him, betrayal against his mother. A swift smack to the head put Shino back in his place and the bugs immediately withdrew, back inside.

It wasn't his father who'd hit him. It was the woman standing in front of him.

Her eyes hardened. "Your father's been through a lot. You're old enough to live on your own. What do you have to get upset about? Your mother's _dead_. Your father moved on…why can't you?"

A lump caught in his throat as he stared at the woman, a barren emptiness suddenly taking root somewhere in the pit of his stomach, spreading to his chest. He immediately turned and left, despite the protests from his father to stay and talk about it. His father wouldn't go after him–he knew he'd need his space.

And that…is how he found himself sitting behind the tree reserved for 'privacy', staring at the fence behind it, feeling absolutely numb. Sure, if Kiba had come across him, he'd just say he was sulking…but this was beyond sulking, right? He felt completely empty; he felt betrayed. By his own father, too!

And if he _was_ sulking…didn't he have the right to do that in this situation without people looking at him funny?

He sighed, running a hand through the hair at the top of his head, closing his eyes bitterly. There was no reason for any of this, right?

"Same time, same place, eh?"

His opened his eyes to see TenTen standing there, her face vacant, eyes red and puffy. He tilted his head a little, knitting his eyebrows together. …Why…did she look just as miserable as him? She shuffled from foot to foot, actually looking somewhat anxious, before she finally sat down beside him, staring straight in front of her toward the fence.

"Shino."

His mouth opened, and the words came easily. "TenTen."

They sat there in silence, and he realized it was ten times as awkward as his awkward silences with Kiba. He stared at the fence for the longest time before he finally looked over at her. He couldn't see her body per-se under the clothes she'd switched to when she got older–but it was still there, visible. He looked away, tongue grazing over his lower lip, clenching his hands again.

What did he want?

At the moment…all he wanted was release. To vent every aching frustration that had ever built up in him over the years. To let every suppressed urge and want and need to come spilling out into the open, fist hair and bruise bones, bite and scratch and let every angry urge to be released. He was never like Kiba; he pent anger and betrayal and feelings like that up inside instead of releasing it boisterously. Anger had welled up in him over time, so much anger he couldn't stand it, so much anger he couldn't even release it in battle anymore.

He glanced over at her for a brief moment. The second his eyes met hers, she pounced. Before he knew it she was in his lap, hands raking up his head and neck, lips pressing against his, so much desperation into the kiss that their teeth clacked against each other's. Before he knew it, he'd clawed at her hair, raking his fingers through it and tearing those buns out of her hair. One hand lowered, hand raking against the cloth of her shirt, fisting into the middle of her back.

She put her weight fully into him, and he found himself having difficulty breathing. He could feel her breasts pressed against the thin shirt he'd put on under his coats, the only thing separating them being her clothes. He felt his pants tighten, and after much wrestling and probing into their mouths with tongues, she finally pulled away from air, panting heavily against his cheek. He imagined she was feeling the same thing he was, since he too found himself panting for breath.

Her hands grabbed at his face, and she dipped down, her swollen lips grazing over his as she spoke in hurried in whispers.

"I know a better place than this. It's completely secluded."

Before he could even snatch those lips away in another kiss, she'd already removed herself from him, trying her best to put her hands up in those damn buns again. His entire body went cold, feeling empty now that her warmth wasn't against him. He stared at up at her, knuckles scraping uselessly at the soil beneath them.

She was still breathing heavily, he could see, and her eyes were lidded. She looked down at him, whispering again though he could hear it just fine.

"Are you coming or not?" She brushed her tongue over her teeth, teasingly. "I'll continue whether you're there or not. I need to vent."

–––––––––––––––––––

He collapsed on top of her in the soft grass of the forest, kissing and sucking at her neck, fists clenched. She'd gotten those coats off again before they even got there, and now she was busy ripping the shirt over his arms and head, giving her access to his lean muscles.

For a moment he fought with her, his fist hitting her right in the ribcage, her nails digging deep into his back, setting the kikaichuu inside him on edge. The emotions reaching them were mixed–friend or foe? He finally tore the buns from her hair. As he pushed his fist against her shoulder as he pulled away from her, staring at the hair pooling around her face and watching her chest rise and fall, the brunette grunted and twisted out of his grip, turning the tables on him.

The reaction was instant–the cuts down his back started to sting and he winced. She fumbled with her clothes, finally managing to expose her breasts. He sucked in a breath, and she dipped down, her hands scrawling over his six pack, up to his chest and past his pecks, up to his collar bone. He didn't know where she got it, but somehow she managed to swipe at him with a kunai, drawing blood from the base of his neck to the end of the collarbone, nearly nicking the tender nipple. He grunted, reaching up and grabbing her hips, tossing her over so he'd be on top.

In his haste, he somehow grabbed her hips too hard, did something wrong along the line, and pressed her closer to his erection. He groaned, and she bit her lip, kneading into his chest deliberately, as if trying to keep herself from making a sound just yet. Her breasts bounced, and he finally found his momentum, tossing her over so he could get better access to those without her struggling as hard.

He bent down to take one of her nipples in his mouth, but she fought, striking him in the wound, trying to assert her dominance. They rolled around on the grass a few times, each trying to be on top, until finally all of their intense anger had been exhausted and they just lay there, panting against each other and trying to catch their breath.

Her head was resting against his chest, and he had a hand cupping the back of her head, his fists clenching and unclenching, his frustration still there, the tension not leaving. Her anger was spent, as were most of the negative emotions she'd been feeling all day. He slowly turned, straddling her again, his erection pressing right against her hips again. She grabbed him by the face, too tired to struggle for the top anymore. She pulled his face down, bringing his mouth over her own, that same, desperate movement in everything she did.

As he pulled away, she made sure to whisper in his ear, finally moaning as he stroked his thumb over her nipple.

"M-Make it hurt."

–––––––––––––––––––

TenTen walked into the cramped little apartment she'd lived in since she was a kid. She always imagined she'd be an ANBU captain by now, able to live on her own in one of those amazing apartments with plenty of room, enough to even have a private training ground. She sighed, taking the buns out of her hair and running her hand through the brown locks, taking a deep breath.

Leaves.

She went red, brushing those out of her hair and did a quick rundown to make sure she didn't miss anything. She was sore all over, aching up a storm, but it was great. Like after a really tough mission.

Her chest rose and fell in another deep breath, and she heard coughing from the bedroom. Her face fell and she walked in there to see her mother on the futon, hacking up a storm. She sighed, going to her side and patting her on the back. Her mother turned, brown eyes shining.

"Oh, TenTen. Welcome back home… I…well…you ran out so…so fast…I…" She looked down, coughing into her hand.

"I'm sorry." TenTen smiled, finally able to say it, though in truth, she was bitter. "I shouldn't have yelled. I…" She fell silent, a lump twisting in her throat, before she looked back at her. "I just…wanted some time to myself today… It won't happen again."

"TenTen…you shouldn't have to worry so much about me. You haven't taken a mission out of the village since your father left." Her mother watched her as she stood and asked if she wanted some water before narrowing her eyes. "Did…you get into a fight while you were out?"

TenTen froze, turning around to look at her mother. "No…why?"

"…You have grass stains all over your clothes…and your clothes are ripped and you're bruised all over… Training again?"

"Well…I…I…er… No." She went beet red and started to walk out, and then her mother cleared her throat again, speaking a bit more firmly.

"What's his name?"

"…N-No one. Just one of the guys from the Aburame clan. It's no big deal."

Her mother started to cough. "An Aburame this time? You really do get around. Hopefully he'll be the last. I'm tired of you sleeping around. You're worse than I was at your age. At least I had the common sense to not go anywhere near the clan members."

"I…uh…yeah. I'll go make you some dinner." She gave her mother a soft smile and left the room, flushing scarlet. As she entered the kitchen, she muttered under her breath as the pots and pans clattered onto the counter.

"Maybe you should have gone near clan members, Mom. They are _far_ more interesting."

Sex–it was like battling all over again. She couldn't get enough of it. Each clan member had their own unique quirk, it was all so great.

Shino, however, was by _far_ the most intriguing.

––––––––––––––––––––––––

Shino stepped in the door, past the kitchen, and, hopefully, to his room before his father noticed he was back.

He wasn't nearly as lucky as he'd hoped he'd be.

His father grabbed him by the arm, pulling him around to face him. "Shino, boy, we need to talk. It's about what Keiko said earlier. She shouldn't have said it like that, and I know you were upset, so–"

Shino recoiled at the touch, heart rate increasing tenfold, face flushing scarlet. "It's fine, Dad. I'm fine. Now. It's not a big deal." He spun on his heels and made a last-ditch effort to just dash to his room and hope his father didn't follow. The second he lifted his foot, his father grabbed him, fingers digging into the joint of his shoulder. He winced, turning and staring at him, bewildered.

"D-Dad? What the–"

"They're squirming more than usual."

"What are you–"

"You aren't angry, but they're this active. I know why, Shino. I know. Father knows. Those bugs stay this active for an hour after sex, boy. Who was it? A random quickie in a back alley? One of the girls at that brothel I pointed you towards? Who is it?"

"…Dad, I'm not–"

"Then why haven't you taken your coat off yet? You take all of those layers off and hang them up by the front door without fail. What made you stop today?"

"I just…I just didn't _feel_ like it, alright?"

"Off."

"What?"

"You heard me, boy." He grabbed at the buttons, unbuttoning them like a seasoned professional, kikaichuu immediately swarming around his son to keep him still. The second the coats were off, he tossed them to the ground and surveyed the damage. His mouth opened in a toothy grin, and he clamped a hand onto Shino's shoulder.

"A _feisty_ one, eh?? I really gotta know the maker of these bruises, boy! And _cuts_?? Didn't think you'd like the kinky stuff!" He laughed out loud, and Shino turned bright red, trying his hardest to turn invisible under his father's scrutinizing gaze. As long as his old man didn't go through a list of the girls in the village, girls he'd kno–

"Who was that one girl who was good with weapons? Not a clan girl, but…hummm… What was her name again?"

"Dad!" He shoved his father away, bugs swarming over his skin defensively. "It's no one, alright?? Just a nobody off the street. I had some steam to burn off, some frustrations to vent, okay?" He rubbed at the hair at the top of his head and spun around, retreating to his room. "I swear, she meant nothing, she _is_ nothing…" He was hurting like a bitch; all he wanted to do was sleep. Sex with her wasn't sex or a release–it was a battle. Just one long battle that wound up making him feel drained in so many ways.

His father hit his hand in his fist, eyes widening. "Finally he took a step forward. And with TenTen, no less…" His smile widened. "That's my boy."


	4. Silence

_Uh…not sure what to make of this chapter. All it really does is set up for the rest of the fic. Everything, and I do mean everything. Not sure how to continue this… Uh…_

_What? Ha ha._

_The song this time around is Silence. The lyrics are fairly perfect. And when I say Silence, I mean the acoustic version on their album Alhambra. The version on Edges of Twilight just isn't as satisfying, to me. (I strongly recommend listening to both versions, of course.)_

_Um…the reason why this chapter is long is because it involves a bunch of talk-talk-talking and then finally the beginning of a mission. If you've read ANY of my other fics, you'll realize I have this strange habit–a debilitating rut, if you will–of choosing missions involving young girls. I just…can't think of anything worthwhile. Nothing else._

_So, as for the inevitable disclaimer that seems to be SO popular…_

_**Be glad I don't own Naruto.** I'd send Kishimoto into convulsions by somehow only putting missions in the entire fucking show involving young girls ages 6 to 14 that have a habit of  
a) getting kidnapped by bandits  
b) getting lost in the woods or  
c) getting kidnapped _after_ getting lost in the woods by either bandits and/or missing-nin in league against Konoha._

_That's how everything would go if I owned Naruto. Isn't that sad? I'd be a filler MACHINE!! Me and little girls getting kidnapped. GAWD! (Maybe I should slip in a little boy and change it up a little. Raise some hell, for sure. Don't worry. That will be in the next mission Shino takes in this fic. (He takes two, by the way. This is the first.))_

_But yeah. I have no idea how these lands of Naruto work. Kill me or shoot me or sue me, one of the three. If it's that bad, tell me and I won't fix it. Because I can't be arsed to fix something right now._

_One question, though: _

_Kikai, Kikkaichuu, Kikkaichu, or Kikaichuu? _

_For the life of me, I can't tell which way it should be spelled; all I know is that the last way (the one I've been using for the past two chapters) looks wrong for some reason. Anyone care to tell me the CORRECT way of spelling it?_

* * *

**One Step Closer Away  
**_Part Four–Silence_

Over the course of four weeks, they had sex six times.

That made seven in total.

It had been four weeks and, ever since their first time, they hadn't spoken a single word to each other. She'd see him by the tree, smile and grab his hand, and soon they'd be off in their private place in the forest floor, rolling around on the grass, battling, having sex, kikaichuu swarming the air as adrenaline pumped through him and the urge to fight became great, kunai slicing every inch of skin he'd exposed. Sex was a battle with her: angry, repressed feelings resulting in angry, rough, venting–almost vengeful–sex.

After the first time, she'd see in him the street and keep walking. After the first time, _he_ had to search _her_ out, and even when he found her, the words didn't come and she wouldn't say a word and they wound up just parting ways. After the first time, it was all just one big blur, like every battle he'd been in over the years. Nothing memorable about it, like it shouldn't have been–just one big fight that happened to have a different ending.

It was the seventh time they had sex that really spooked him.

It wasn't rough, and it wasn't angry. For the first time, it was just…fun. He couldn't remember why or what set it off, but throughout the entire time, every kiss sent her into a fit of giggles, every touch set her off. She smiled, she laughed; he was actually enjoying himself. It wasn't a battle…it was…just…_sex_…

It scared him and made him feel so confused inside.

When the blur of laughter ended and she finally fell silent, as he pulled out and fell onto his back in the grass, she finally looked over at him. For the first time since, their eyes met and she leaned over, pulled him into a kiss. She leaned over into his ear after and whispered his name softly. Once. Twice. Three times. Fifty. He couldn't remember the number, but it made his chest tighten and his breathing stop.

At first the urge to push her away overshadowed everything else, until her voice softened considerably, and she laughed a little bit as she said his name.

"Shino."

They both stood up, brushed the moment off as best as they could, got dressed and parted ways without another word as they had been doing for weeks. The second she left his sight, it began to eat at him.

"Shino."

Before he went to sleep, that whisper would echo in his ear.

"Shino."

It woke him in the morning and it…

"Shino."

…it calmed him.

His father had taken to inviting that woman–he later learned her name was just as plain as her body and mind were uniquely invigorating: Keiko–over more often…to do something stupid like get him used to her. Every time he saw those two talking to each other, the urge to go and smack his father for betraying his mother like that would rise in him and a few bugs would skitter across his skin out and back into some pore that opened up.

"Shino."

Before he knew it, that name whispered softly, happily and laughing, into his ear and he would relax.

It was after their seventh time that it started to hurt when she'd pass him on the street and not acknowledge him.

A week after their seventh time, he sat behind that fence and stared at it, mind wandering, thoughts melding together so that the only coherent thought that he could pull from his string of consciousness was the only one that shouted at him loud and clear–

_What was this feeling?_

It soon was joined by another thought.

_What am I to her?_

And another.

_What is she to _me_?_

And finally a fourth.

_Ah shit. Am I…Am I in _love_ with her?_

Love was probably the biggest weakness he had ever seen in a ninja. He could see it. His love for his teammates surely did get him into some narrow scrapes in the past, and he'd more than once been severely injured trying to keep Hinata out of danger. But this feeling was twice as intense and extremely different than for Hinata or Kiba. A little diluted from Hinata, but _drastically_ different from Kiba.

Before he knew it, someone had sunk down next to him as he stared off, lost in thought.

"It's strange seeing you wearing all of those layers when I've seen you completely naked."

His face fell, his jaw dropped and eyes widened, and he turned to her face to see her looking slightly amused, lips curling into that same smartass smirk she'd worn before all of these weeks of complete silence.

"T-TenTen," he mumbled, the kikaichuu going crazy inside him as his heart rate increased.

"Shino," she nodded.

His heart beat quickened when she snorted a little as she said that name, and his insides started crawling…literally. She stretched and put her hands behind her head, cracking her neck. She looked back at him, removing her legs from the space beside her chest and dropping them out in front of her boyishly, to match his pose.

"I've been wondering, Shino, about how it must feel with those…um…bugs…crawling around inside of you."

"Wh…" His face paled, and he cursed inwardly, his insides crawling even harder than before. Did…Did she notice how much they'd started moving since she said his name? How the hell had she noticed? That was one of the other reasons why he wore all these layers–so no one could feel the squirming under his skin with all of these layers! "Wh…What??"

She put a finger to her lips and shrugged her shoulders casually. "My leg fell asleep the other day and I suddenly wondered if that was what it must've felt like for you…only all the time. No wonder you're such a stuffy person! It must be so uncomfortable living with those bugs inside of you!"

He narrowed his eyes, the squirming diminishing, his eyebrows furrowing, trying to answer her question as best as he could. He couldn't keep the happiness bubbling up in his chest. She was talking to him again!

"Well…uh…the kikaichuu have been with me since birth…so I don't really know what it's like without them. I usually don't give it much thought. Except when my adrenaline rushes and my heart rate speeds up, and they start to move even quicker, I rarely notice. I've also thought people must feel different than me for having these in me…but I've never given it much thought."

Kiba had asked him the same question before, and he'd given the same answer. By the time he'd explained his reasoning, his teammate had looked as if he were about to nod off to sleep. He looked over, expecting the same thing and getting a pleasant surprise to see that TenTen actually looked _interested_. He could _see_ her mind working, wrapping around the concept and trying to come up with something to say to make it easier for him to understand.

After much deliberation, she decided to use the "example" approach. "You've had your foot fall asleep before, right?"

"…Yes… My arm if I've been reading in bed too long."

"And, what does it feel like? Like crawling under your skin, right?"

"Well…more intense than that…and a bit more painful in how uncomfortable it is." His eyes widened in realization. "Oh. Then I suppose the sensation of the kikaichuu normally, for you, would feel like that only not as painfully uncomfortable. And yes, all the time. It's probably not as uncomfortable as it would be if you suddenly had them in you, since I'd grown accustomed to it at birth. Aburame babies wind up being louder than most babies because of it. But the intense sensation is usually like that during battle, when they all rush toward my arms for me to wield them easier."

"I see…"

They trailed off into silence, until she looked back again, that wicked smile on her face, like she knew the answer but wanted to tease him again. "You said it feels like that for battle… I'm curious… Does the same apply to **sex**? 'Cause I've gotta say…" She leaned over, poking him lightly in the chest, and her voice dipped seductively. "…I can _definitely_ feel them crawling under your skin when your body is against mine…"

He went red, a feeling of relief surging through him when he remembered she couldn't see it through his many layers of coats. "Uh…well…my heart rate increases and my adrenaline rushes then, too…so…naturally…uh…y-yes?"

"Neat. How do the kikaichuu work anyway? They sense your reactions to outside stimuli and act accordingly?"

He froze, rolling those words over in his head. Kikaichuu, stimuli. Most people who asked him about it only mentioned the bugs–Kiba often asked how the bugs worked, but he didn't seem to give any indication that he'd given it much thought before. Shikamaru had been the only one who seemed to be genuinely interested and now…now TenTen fell into that category, too.

Someone intelligent enough to keep up with him!

Before he knew it, he'd turned to her–completely excited–so that his entire body faced hers, and he started to speak. Boom, boom, boom. One fact right after the other, in a tirade that would've put Kiba to sleep.

"The second an Aburame child is born, only two kikaichuu are placed in the baby. By the time they reach a week old, there are enough kikaichuu to act as a full defensive shield if the need arises. The number is never set in stone, but there's enough in the baby to make them feel horridly uncomfortable. At that point they cry almost twenty-four seven and have difficulty sleeping. By the time they reach a year old, they grow used to it and become a bit less temperamental. Usually there aren't more than a few thousand in the body at a time, but as soon as adrenaline is secreted into body, the number of them increases tenfold. If needed, hundreds of thousands can be sent out, with plenty enough inside the body to defend the internal organs. They act both as weapons and as shields, you see. When a bone is broken, the kikaichuu will even swarm around the break to set it and protect it and keep it in place, much like how the muscles will inflame…but more helpful. Of course, this is just as much as helpful as it is detrimental. It is the weakness of all those in the Aburame clan. See, what happens is–"

"Wait, wait, wait. Shino."

He stopped, staring at her. "What?"

"…Don't you think it's a little unwise to speak up about your weaknesses…especially if it's a weakness your entire clan shares?"

"Oh. Right…" His cheeks reddened and he mentally kicked himself. The migraine that was starting to form was a sign that the kikaichuu were also less than pleased with his near slip.

Of course…anyone with the comprehension for critical thinking could easily take all of that information and immediately see where the weakness was, how the bugs could be detrimental. He was fairly sure Shikamaru knew his weakness now, after he'd gone and told him the same he'd told TenTen. Like TenTen, the genius had also advised him to shut his mouth before he said something he regretted.

"But, it…it isn't so much a weakness as it is an inconvenience, though…"

The brunette shook her head, determined not to hear one of his clan's secrets. "**No**. If you insist on telling me, this conversation is over and I'm walking away."

Tension hung in the air as an awkward silence settled between them, until she finally turned and looked at him, curling up and resting her head in her knees, smiling softly. "It's obvious by how you talk about your special clan abilities that you're proud. You love it, don't you? Being a ninja?"

The smile didn't meet her eyes as she turned and looked toward the ground, and Shino snorted.

"If I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't have asked my parents to enroll me in the Academy. Of course, I was also obligated as a clan member to join, but I really _did_ enjoy it. And I _am_ proud. Surely you agree with that… Aren't you proud of being a ninja? Don't _you_ enjoy it?"

She looked up at him, her face stiffening. "I…do. Being a ninja has been my dream since I was a little girl. Tsunade-sama has always been my hero. I…I've wanted it for so long."

Shino frowned, noticing the sadness in her eyes. "…You should look happier when you say that, then. If you don't like it, stop taking missions."

Her face fell and she stood, turning to leave. Before he realized what he was doing, he'd grabbed her arm and pulled her down into his lap. He was still covered so they couldn't do a thing, but he managed to look deeply into her eyes, despite the fact that she couldn't do the same for him. Tears welled up in her eyes and she struck him against the head, managing to knock those sunglasses from his face. As he flinched, she jumped up and dashed off.

"What…" Shino rubbed his head, picking up the sunglasses that were now cracked down one of the lenses. He'd have to go get his father to fix them. "What was _that _for? I only told her the truth…"

––––––––––––––––––––

He was still unsure of what to do about this whole situation and their fight, so he did the only thing he could do–

"…Ugh. Dad?"

His father looked up at him from his writing desk in the room by the front door, smiling lightly. "Oh, Shino! Finally speaking to your old man, are you??" He cleared his throat and leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well, it's nice to see you still care. If it's advice you want, I'm fresh out. Maybe an apology will refill my advice meter."

Shino sighed, rubbing the stubble on the side of his head–it was starting to grow back and he was happy for that. "…Dad…I'm sorry I've been getting angry at you lately. I still _am_ a bit angry at you, and I still think what you're doing is terrible, but…I…I need advice…"

His father gave him a long look, removing those sunglasses from his eyes and leaning toward his son, staring him down hard. After an excruciatingly uncomfortable amount of time in which he couldn't look away or else his father would take the apology as a lie, his father finally nodded his head and looked up at the ceiling.

"…I forgive you, son. I'm still angry at you, too, and I think what _you're_ doing is terrible, but I can give you some advice if you need it so badly. What's it for? A mission?" He wiggled his brows a little, stroking his facial hair. "A…_girl_?"

Shino groaned, nodding his head pathetically; his father clapped his hands together, turning to face him fully and bob his head up and down in excitement. Shino groaned even further, knowing _exactly_ what this meant. This was the _same_ thing his dad did when he first explained to him about the birds and the bees. Or as they liked to refer to it in the Aburame household–the _bugs_ and the bees.

"See, Shino, when a man loves a woman–"

"…Dad……"

"–there gets to be this thing between them called _tension_, and when that finally snaps, he's all over her like a fly to week-old, rotting meat. And, yes, the visual is nothing alike, but–"

"Dad."

"–but I _assure_ you, Shino, it might as well be the same thing, because, just like a maggot burrows into week-old, rotting meat, so does the man burrow into a woman's–"

"DAD!"

His father stopped his tirade, stopped his finger digging into his other hand as he spoke, looking over at the younger Aburame quizzically. "Shino, why are you so upset?"

"I've already had this talk with you before, and I hoped I'd have the pleasure of never hearing it from you again. And please…_don't_ continue using hand motions when you explain a visual like that. Why? It makes it ten times worse than it is already. Week-old, rotting meat? That's disgusting."

"Well, I was helping you understa–"

"I got into a fight with TenTen. I need to know how to make things right again."

"Oh…well…every time your mother and I got into a fight, I would take on a really difficult life-or-death mission and she'd snap back to me so quick, she'd be all over me like a fly on–"

"I _really_ don't want that visual again. Although you _could _possibly be compared to week-old, rotting meat."

His father winced, visibly. "Shino! Way to be harsh!" He sighed, reaching up and patting his son on the shoulder. "But I would say the same thing to you if you got on my nerves. Especially with that shitty hair cut of yours." It was Shino's turn to wince, and after their exchange of cheap shots, all was right in the Aburame household, and his father continued. "Now, why did she get mad at you, Shino? Trouble…in bed?"

His son's cheeks went red, and Shibi mentally congratulated himself on reading his son perfectly. A moment of silence passed, and Shino finally cleared his throat. "Well…I… See, she was saying how she'd always wanted to be a ninja, but she looked really sad when she said it. All I did was suggest that if she wasn't happy with it, she should quit taking missions. That's all I said, and she got upset and turned to leave. I grabbed her and tried to talk about it, but she smacked me against the head and ran off before I knew what hit me."

"Well, obviously you offended her."

"…Is this the advice you're planning on giving me? Because I figured that much out on my own, Dad."

The two men exchanged looks, until finally his father rolled his eyes and chose to be a man and ignore that biting remark. His son had every right to be pissed, but he had no right to talk back to his father. But he'd let that slide for the time being.

"…Give her some time."

"Time? That's what I–" His father gave the young man a strained look, and Shino looked away. "Right. I _do_ have plenty of time, but I just… How would you make things right? If I don't soon, she might–"

"So…you've slept with her, right, Shino?"

"W-Well, yeah, but–"

"So you obviously love her."

"Wh-What? No. I don't lo–"

His father's eyes perked. "A friend with benefits, I see…"

"Well, she's not exactly a friend or any–"

"So you _do_ care about–"

"I don't know if I do or not! It's just sex, damn it!!" He tossed his hands in the air in a very un-Shino-like gesture and whirled around on his heels, stomping into his room almost immediately. His father couldn't even say two more words before he heard his son stomping back out toward the door, preparing to leave.

"Sh-Shino…"

He didn't count on the boy looking at him, but, to his surprise, Shino turned and gave him a weary look. "What is it, Dad? I'm sorry I was snippy, but… Just…what is it?"

"You never fantasize about the same girl twice."

"What? Is that…is that an…order?"

"No. It's a statement. I've heard enough of your midnight sex dreams to know you never fantasize about the same girl twice. Go take a mission or something and mull that over a bit. Then, I'm sure you'll see just how to make things right with TenTen."

The two Aburame exchanged a hard look for a brief moment before Shino hurriedly put his coats on and sunglasses on and exited the house. As the door slammed shut behind him, Shibi turned and looked at the table he was sitting at.

"Goodness, it's just like when your mother and I first started dating, Shino."

–––––––––––––––––––––

On his way to go try and take on a mission, he was caught off guard by Shikamaru.

"Oy, Shino!"

Shino turned in his trek to see Shikamaru walking over toward him, wearing that same look he got every time he was looking for someone to help him on a mission. Sure, the Nara genius helped out with the Chuunin exams, and he'd even taken up the opportunity to become a teacher–his application hadn't come back yet, according to the genius–, but he still took missions on rare occasions. Shino approached the genius as the genius approached him, and the two met half-way.

"I need you."

Shino took a slight step back, lifting his arm ever so slightly. "Um…ex…cuse me?"

"I received a mission that requires locating a secret hideout for mercenaries in Marsh country, and you're perfect for the job."

"Get Kiba."

"Can't. This is _Marsh_ country, Shino. You know how Kiba's nose acts up in countries like that. Too many smells, and it's too difficult for him to lock onto the scent of a small girl."

"Girl?"

Shikamaru nodded, waving a folder toward him. "I'd tell you more, but I need to know that you'll consider it first. Surely you're tired of walking around the village and trying to hook Beauty and the Beast up?"

Shino considered this before he remembered what his father had said and graciously took the genius up on his offer. "Count me in. Now…why do you need _me_ for this mission?"

"Alright. Meet me by the tree."

"Meet you? Why do you–" But before he could even finish asking, Shikamaru had disappeared. He sighed and started on his trek to the tree. "And that is exactly why you don't leave in the middle of a conversation. Why? Because it is incredibly rude and you'll wind up offending everyone you were talking with."

When he reached the tree, he saw Shikamaru standing against it with his trusty sidekick and…and…

And why the hell was _Kiba_ there?

Kiba waved in time with Akamaru's happy bark and tail wag, and he slapped a spot next to him and Akamaru on the tree. "Hell yeah, Shino! I see he needed your expertise, too!"

Shino exchanged a look with Shikamaru that clearly meant he hadn't needed Kiba's expertise for this mission–it was something else. Probably that weird ability he and Akamaru had…or…something. There was a loud crunch from Chouji and Shikamaru cleared his throat.

Shino took his spot on the tree, and Shikamaru made sure no one was around before he, rather stupidly for his normally intelligent actions, opened the folder wide open.

"Right. In Marsh Country there is family that has increasingly become more wealthy from trading with Swamp Country. Their daughter has unwittingly been targeted by a group of mercenaries hired to kidnap her for ransom. We don't know the details, but there has already been three attempts of kidnapping. Our best ninja have been dispatched before, but now it's become rather bothersome. They want us to lead a group to find where the mercenaries are hiding and wipe them out. After the mercenaries are wiped out, the family can concentrate on finding who hired them and cut them off."

Kiba thrust his fist into the air. "Yeah! My nose is going to–"

"Not work this time."

Kiba turned and stared slack-jawed at the Nara genius, looking utterly offended. "Wh-WHAT!?"

"We're using her as bait. When they've kidnapped her, we'll discover where they're all located."

"So…we can use my nose to follow her to their hideout!"

"Shino's kikaichuu would work much better for this mission. See, we don't want to follow them too closely. With your nose, we'd have to at least stay a certain amount of steps behind them, and even then, her scent would be very faint. Your nose won't work. Assuming the mercenaries are from more obscure beginnings, they'll never suspect a few bugs crawling around on them to be anything more than just that–bugs crawling on them. This is _Marsh_ Country. There are enough bugs in that environment to take down an army. Shino will work best in those conditions."

"So…why am I even _here_?"

Shikamaru turned to the dog-nin and gave him a wry grin. "Because their daughter is a dog-lover, of course. With your natural doggishness and Akamaru with you, the both of you can calm her down enough to go along with this plan."

"Wh-What!? So we've been reduced to…to…PETS!?"

Shino couldn't keep the smile from his lips. "It would appear so, pupsy-wupsy…"

"GofuckyourselfShino," muttered Kiba in a speed that only Shino and Hinata–and maybe Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi, and Jiraiya–could ever understand after years of listening to his mouth go a mile a minute. Akamaru barked in agreement, in that doggy way that only Shino and Hinata and any member of the Inuzuka clan could understand after years of learning to speak dog.

Chouji turned and gave Shino a strange look, almost unable to believe he'd said something so…so **cute**. Shino cleared his throat upon realizing Shikamaru was giving him the same look. He muttered a quiet, "It's what I do when he annoys me," before he went slightly red and looked off to the side.

"Riiight. Well. Kiba is going to be our dog-whisperer, Chouji is going to be our back-up, and Shino is going to be our tracker. There we go. Ah! Wait." The genius looked around for a short moment. "Where's Neji?"

Shino paled, and a sound behind the tree ruffled behind them.

"I've _been_ here. You said behind the tree and I didn't feel like moving."

"Oh, right. Well. Get out from behind the tree, Neji."

Neji turned and walked over toward the four–five, sorry Akamaru–and cleared his throat. "This feels strange with Naruto gone." He gave Shino a sour look. "Why did it have to be Shino with us this time around, Nara?"

"…Did I not just explain this?" asked Shikamaru.

"I'm pretty sure you explained it already," answered Chouji thoughtfully.

"Yeah, he already explained it, Neji. Too bad your ears aren't as good as your eyes," chuckled Kiba. Akamaru barked, and Kiba laughed, translating dog for the rest of the guys. "Yeah, that's what you get for staying behind the tree."

"Reliving memories, I assume?" whispered Shino so quietly he hoped no one would hear him.

Neji shot him a glare, having heard it, and proceeded to give each member of the troupe, in turn, the finger. "All of you better die on this mission or I'll have hoped for nothing."

This biting remark was met with, rather than offended looks and a few biting comments in return, laughter on Chouji and Kiba's part. Shikamaru snickered and Shino simply smiled. Akamaru, on the other hand, was howling with the kind of laughter dogs weren't supposed to make because they weren't supposed to understand human speech like nin-dogs could.

Neji went red and crossed his hands over his chest, sticking his nose in the air. "I _really_ mean it now. You guys are a bunch of douche bags." He turned to Shino, not even hiding his dislike for the bug-nin. "Especially you, bugfuck. I'll kick your ass one of these days. You're lucky we're going to be on this mission together and I _have_ to tolerate your shit."

Three and a half men–Akamaru counted as half a person–looked over at the Hyuuga, jaws nearly dropping at his direct hate. Shino just looked at Neji, sighing lightly. "It's pathetic to get so upset over a girl, Neji. For your information, TenTen and I aren't in a relationship."

"What?"

"Why aren't we? Because we've got nothing in common. The only girl I'd willingly put myself into a relationship with would be Hinata, and she's with my other teammate, so that's never going to happen."

Neji stiffened, and Kiba slapped his forehead. "Ahhhh damn, _major_ cockblock, Shino. With Neji in the know, Hinata won't go. That's the same as her father knowing who she's with."

The most miraculous thing happened–

Shino no longer had to worry about Neji kicking his ass, for the Hyuuga had turned his hatred on Kiba.

––––––––––––––––––

They were going to leave in the morning.

Before the sun set, Shino had his things packed and fixed his sunglasses, his name written on paper for his involvement in the mission. Before the sun rose, after a rather vivid fantasy about TenTen–again–, he discovered his father up and cooking what smelled like spoiled milk and charred pork dumplings.

He crept into the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and walked toward the table. His father turned to him, smiling widely. "Good luck on your mission, Shino! Your old man is making you the most delicious pre-mission breakfast! I can assure you, it tastes a lot better than it smells, and with this breakfast, you won't even have to eat until dinner!"

Shino sniffed the air, highly doubting that. "…You mean I won't _want_ to eat until dinner, right? I was going to meet up with Chouji for Korean barbeque, actually. His mother always makes him some before a mission, and he invited all of us over. His mother's cooking is able to keep him full longer than anyone else's cooking, apparently…"

"An Akimichi secret recipe, no doubt," his father grumbled. He stopped the food and tossed it into the trash, not even caring about wasting it. "Damn those fatasses and their ability to cook so damn well… That's fine, though. You run along to your mission. And remember, Shino–protect your ribcage as if your heart were totally exposed."

Shino nodded his head tiredly, clearing his throat. "I'll make sure to do that, Dad." He yawned and walked off to go get ready.

By the time he reached the front door, he saw his father sitting in the room across from the writing room–where all of their bugs were kept. Countless of species, all lined up in a row in plastic cases, each taken care of as if they were children. He peeked in as his father was feeding the colony of the grasshoppers they'd both collected over the years.

"…Dad?"

His father turned and looked at him, waving. "Good luck, Shino."

The younger Aburame nodded his head, going in and leaning over toward his dad. A few of the kikaichuu climbed out of a pore and onto his father's shoulder, and he turned around and left. His father let out a sigh and took the kikaichuu into his own body in what could only be described as a rather intimate father-son hug that most of the other clans would deem creepy, but, for the Aburame clan, was commonplace.

It was just one of the many quirks the two shared.

–––––––––––––––––––

After a rather appetizing breakfast–that really felt more like dinner–the troupe set out for the gate. The gates opened just as the sun rose, and Kiba, Neji, and Shino all paused for a quick moment. Before they knew it, Hinata was running up to the gate, waving at them.

"K-K-Kiba! Sh-Shino! N-Neji! I…I wanted to…" She took a deep breath and hurried over, giving them all a quick, yet endearing, hug. "I wanted to see you off…" She looked up at her teammates, smiling warmly. "You two take care of each other…"

Kiba gave Shino a look that clearly showed he'd prefer the bug-nin to do what he did best and take care of his own damn self, but nodded his head either way. She reached down and gave a hug to Akamaru, smiling warmly and nuzzling his fur.

"M-Make sure you pass that on to K-K-Kiba-kun…wh-when night falls and he gets cold…"

The dog barked back in response, and Hinata moved toward her cousin, nodding her head in his direction.

"T-Take care of them, Neji…"

Neji gave them both the same look Kiba had given Shino earlier, but he managed to suck it up and nod his head anyway. Before Hinata could turn and leave, Kiba had snatched her by the wrist and pulled her into a quick kiss, causing her to turn bright red.

"I'd rather keep _this_ when night falls and I get cold," he grinned into her hair.

He released her and she nodded her head, leaving promptly to get breakfast started for her family, and Kiba looked over at Shino. "She's a babe, Shino. I can totally see how you'd want her, too. But back off. She's mine."

Neji cleared his throat. "She's still _my_ cousin, and I'm _still_ here." With another patented Hyuuga death glare, Mr. Fate himself turned and followed after Shikamaru and Chouji, both of whom were leaning in close together and speaking about absolutely nothing; Kiba patted Shino on the back, turning to go follow him. Akamaru followed after his partner, making sure to lower his head and push Kiba onto his back as he dashed off.

"Yeehaw!! Let's _go_, Akamaru! We'll kick all that mercenary ass ourselves! Let's show these chumps how we do things in Kiba-town!"

As Shino stared at the empty streets feeling a strange sort of emptiness, he could still hear Kiba going on like a cowboy behind him. That same voice echoed in his ear bitterly.

"Shino."

He looked down at the ground, muttering a quick curse. He approached the gate, sighing in aggravation. What the hell was this feeling? He couldn't _possibly_ be in love with her. That was just _ridiculous_. And all it would do would be his downfall. She was just… She was only in it for the foreplay, obviously.

"So the Mohawked ninja is going off on a dangerous mission in Marsh Country? He better take care of himself." There was a laugh as the voice mocked his own strange way of speaking. "Why? Because I still need someone to play with."

Shino paled and looked up the gate. There, walking along the wall, was TenTen holding her arms out for balance, smirking like the smartass that she was. Before he could even say her name, she'd jumped down and grabbed him by the arm, spinning him around in a dizzying circle.

"Better be quicker on your feet than you are now if you want to survive, bug-boy! Wipe the sleep outta your eyes and get your ass in gear!"

Ah. His other weakness… All of those kikaichuu in his head made it much harder for him to maintain equilibrium than most other ninja. Swirling around and getting him all dizzy. What the hell was she doing? Did she even realize she'd just gotten him with one of his own clan weaknesses?

He stumbled out of her grip, nearly tripping over his own feet as he went staggered right into the gate. She laughed, helping him stand. "I suppose there are no ballet dancers in your clan, Shino?" She patted him on the rump teasingly. "But, either way, I expect to see this ass back in Konoha, uncovered and unscathed. Get out there and kick some mercenary ass for _me_. I expect to hear all about it when you get back."

Before he could get his bearings straight and say something to her, Kiba yelled out behind him. "Shino!? Are you _still_ back at the gate!? We've got no time for dawdling, buddy!! Get your ass in gear!"

He turned to her, stuttering. "Y-Y-You're not angry?"

She laughed, her hand over her mouth. "Of course not! You're going out on a mission! By the time you get back I'll be so pissed you'll taste blood for weeks, but until then you might as well enjoy the distance from me!" She leaned up, yanking his collar down and crashing her lips into his. As she drew back, she nipped his bottom lip and licked the blood off, a laugh building in her throat.

"Good luck, Shino." There was a rather pained laughter in her voice, from what he could hear. "Better come back here in one piece."

His breathing escalated and he lifted his sleeve, releasing a few kikaichuu from his pores. They crawled onto her shoulder, and she smirked at him. "What's the occasion? Today's not my birthday…"

"If they're still alive by the time I get back, I'll give you an even better present."

She snorted, waving at him. "Sure thing. Now get moving, Shino."

He turned and started off after his troupe, and she smirked, staring at the kikaichuu on her shoulder. After a short moment, she looked over toward him dwindling off into the distance and nodded her head.

"Keep an eye on that heart, Shino," she said, biting back the urge to laugh. "I look forward to seeing it in my hands when I get back." One of the kikaichuu gave her a strange look, and she put a finger to her lips. "Shhh. Don't tell him I said that when he comes back."

Another quick look, and she sighed as she turned around and started back to what she'd been doing before she took time out of her busy schedule to go see that bug-bastard off.

"He _better_ come back in one piece or I'm going to kick all of their doughy asses."


	5. Gyroscope

_Um…I'm still slightly shocked that no one's told me I forgot to change this to mature after a rather raunchy chapter! (And another one!) Do you people really not care if it's Mature or not?? O: I need to be all nice and safe, so I will blanket this fic with a Mature rating from now on. (It's because it's not raunchy ENOUGH. I just KNOW it. Dx)_

_Alrighty. I struggled with what to call this one. I originally planned on it being in chapter four, but for whatever reason, I decided it needed to be in its own stand-alone chapter._

_Which screwed me over. Usually I decided which song I'd use before writing it, that way I could get a clear mood in my head and stuff. But no. I started writing these past few chapters before picking a title, so it was a struggle to find one that fit even remotely. And they all have to be Tea Party songs, because I decided on it in chapter one and I'm too anal to change my mind._

_So…I'm thinking Gyroscope. I feel it fits the mood quite well, and the lyrics are vague enough…

* * *

  
_

**One Step Closer Away**  
_Part Five–Gyroscope_

"Come on, Shino!" shouted Kiba, leaning backwards far enough so he could look at the man behind him while grinning madly like some weird contortionist at the circus. "There's room for two, if you waaaant!" he sang, practically begging someone to ride Akamaru with him.

Shino looked up at the dog-nin, sweat dripping down his cheek reflexively. "Uh…" He held back a cringe. "I think I'll pass, Kiba."

From the front of the group, they heard a certain lazy shadow-nin speak up eagerly. "If Shino won't, I _will_." Akamaru let out a bark, shaking his head. Kiba just laughed and patted the dog's head, giving him a firm scratch between his ears.

"Sorry, Shikamaru. Akamaru only lets me, Hinata, or Shino ride him." He leaned down, whispering something into the dog's ear. Akamaru immediately gave a chipper bark, dashing ahead. As he did, Kiba shifted down his back, making room for the newcomer.

The dog slipped his head down, easing between Shikamaru's legs as the shadow-nin balked, spreading his legs wide at the intrusive hound. "WH-Wh– Woah! Kiba, get your crazy dog out of my personal–" The dog lifted him up, sliding him down over his front leg muscles. The muscles shifted as it walked, and Shikamaru turned to look back at Kiba, having to adjust to the movement. It wasn't _so_ bad after he got used to it. It was just a matter of _when_ he'd get used to it…

"Wh-What the–"

Kiba grabbed Shikamaru's shoulder playfully, shoving himself up close to the genius. He was now having the time of his life.

"What's the matter, Chief?? That lazy streak of yours suddenly take a backseat to your pride??" He laughed heartily. "I forgot to mention there's a spot reserved for the captain of any expedition on Akamaru's back!"

Shikamaru turned forward, letting a grin play on his face, cheeks tingeing pink slightly. "Alright, but you better not be a backseat driver, Kiba," he said, his eyes shifting back to the map in his hands. Before Kiba could even question what a backseat driver was, he cleared his throat. "It's a two day trek." He jabbed the map, marking their position with a shadow-forming crease in the paper. "When the sun begins to set, we'll set up camp."

The words were fairly obvious to all of them–after all, that was the only logical time to set up camp unless someone became seriously injured earlier on in the day and they had to break sooner. Neji grunted a little, and Chouji looked up at the man sitting up on the dog, nodding his head. Shino…

Shino just accepted it and kept quiet. He had more important things on his mind–what he was actually going to give TenTen as a present when he got back the _least_ of his worries.

––––––––––––––––––––

The sun was beginning to set when they stopped to set up camp. Much to the shadow-nin's chagrin, everyone crowded around the map the second Kiba let out a gasp. The dog-nin noticed the map and shouted, "Wow!!" Chouji turned and looked at the map, used to the sight, but Shino and Neji hadn't ever seen it before and they both let out snorts through their noses and nodded their heads, clearly impressed.

"Neat," Neji said. "The shadow tracked our movement on the map. That's a cool trick, Shikamaru."

"I can't rely on instinct and smell like Kiba. This is just a trick my dad taught me," the genius replied, making a crease for their campsite. The shadow retracted to the recesses of the previous crease, and Shikamaru shrugged. "The only hassle is that it takes a _lot_ of concentration to keep accurate."

"How accurate do you think it is?" asked Neji.

Chouji answered the question for his best friend, knowing his friend hated being the center of attention when it came to his abilities. "He's been using it ever since…er…Asuma's death was avenged…so he's pretty much perfected it. If he'd been walking the whole time, it probably wouldn't have been as accurate as it is now."

Shikamaru gave Kiba a pat on the back as thanks for letting him take the saddle for a while, and turned to the troops. "Right. Let's get onto the business of setting up camp." It was very obvious he preferred not to talk about himself too much. "Chouji, you're on food duty. Neji and Shino, you're on shelter. Kiba, firewood. Though, I need your help to find the nearest stream for some fresh water."

The young men all set out to do their jobs, and, with Chouji acting as mediator between Shino and Neji's death glares and mini-skirmishes, they soon had a campsite up and running, all gathering around a pit fire, cooking rabbit, as the moon was just starting to rise in the night sky.

Chouji, cooking a cut of rabbit meat over the fire, looked over at Shikamaru and smiled softly. "So, who's got first watch?"

As if on cue, all eyes turned to Shikamaru, and the leader cleared his throat, uncomfortable again. "Well, how do we all want the tents arranged? There's only three, after all."

"I'll get a tent with you, Shikamaru," said Chouji a little too quickly.

"Well, I don't mind who I sleep next to," said Kiba. "Except, um…" He glanced over at Neji warily, slightly uncomfortable toward the idea of being anywhere near _him_ while asleep. Shino had told him about his sleep-talking, and the last thing he wanted was to mention Hinata in his sleep and have her cousin assume something dirty.

Neji glared. "I don't mind sharing with any of you either, even if I have to share my tent with the dog."

Man and man's best friend shot the Hyuuga a dirty look, and Shikamaru cleared his throat again to keep things civil. "How about we have Neji with _Shino_? Kiba can sleep with Akamaru, and I'll sleep…next to Chouji." Neji gave the shadow-nin a strange look, but Shikamaru recovered quickly and looked over at Shino. "You mentioned nothing went on between you and TenTen. There shouldn't be anything wrong with that arrangement, right?"

Shino shook his head, secretly wishing he could've convinced Akamaru to sleep outside while he slept with Kiba. He wasn't completely sure he wouldn't have a dream about TenTen…

With that set, Kiba lifted his hand, always eager to be first. "Me and Akamaru call first watch!!"

Shino gave a soft sigh of relief–maybe he could steal Kiba's tent and force a change in sleeping arrangements. As much as he thought it'd be best if Kiba was nowhere near Neji when he spoke in his sleep–and often about Hinata–, he was feeling just slightly selfish. He raised his hand. "If none of you mind, I can take last watch."

Chouji and Shikamaru nodded their heads, but Kiba blinked, ruining his plans. "But you're an insomniac, Shino! You're always awake with me when I do first watch! Why don't you just take the one after mine and make the best of it?" He ripped at the strip of rabbit meat he'd roasted to the point of dried jerky, and Shikamaru nodded in agreement.

"That sounds good. After Shino will be Neji; after Neji, Chouji; and then I can take last watch. The cycle will go in a period of hours, starting after dinner. Kiba, Shino, both of you will get a second watch, so– Wait, I shouldn't have to relay this to you. Both of you have been on missions before."

Kiba laughed. "Shino's been avoiding missions, so he might be a little rusty." He looked over at Shino, laughter bubbling up even harder. "The last mission was a complete **failure**! I've never _seen_ Shino perform so terribly! It wasn't even a big deal, either! It was a simple delivery mission and he _still_ managed to screw it up! Me and Hinata had _so_ much trouble trying to get his lazy ass up! He wound up sleeping until noon and the package was delivered a day late!"

Shino cursed inwardly, completely ignoring how much the others were starting to laugh as Kiba relayed the entire story of his most recent failure. It was after midnight that his dreams _really_ heated up. Tonight was going to be a long, _long_ night.

–––––––––––––––––

The young men all retreated to their tents, leaving Kiba, Akamaru and Shino huddled by the fire that was starting to die down. Crickets chirped in the background, and the moon shone through the trees. Kiba took another bite of the jerky he'd been saving for an after-dinner snack, and handed a strip off to the dog resting up against his thigh.

He turned to Shino. "So…what? Can you not just fall asleep before ten or something?"

"Yeah, I can't sleep until ten. I'm just not sleepy. Even though the sun sets at least three hours before… My Dad says it's not too big of a problem. It seems to run in the family–he can't sleep until at least one in the morning on missions." He paused, groaning inwardly for instinctively responding to curiosity. "…Haven't I already explained this to you? I _hate_ repeating myself."

Kiba nodded passively, and it was then that Shino noticed he was obsessively patting the spot Hinata had nuzzled against Akamaru just that morning. "I just wanted to make conversation," he admitted. He bent down and nuzzled the spot, inhaling lightly and, so he hoped, subtly.

Shino smiled easily, knowing just how thoughtful Hinata was–a lot like Kiba at his best moments, actually. "Hinata made sure to leave a little bit of her scent behind on Akamaru, didn't she?"

Kiba jolted away from the dog, cheeks flushing red. "S…" He looked down, chuckling. "I can't hide anything from you, can I? Y…Yeah…" He nodded, that smile on his face growing. "…She's so great… I can't tell ya how badly I wanted to rub it in Naruto's face when she finally admitted she liked me last month…" He gave a soft laugh, actually finding a quiet tone and keeping it quiet. He rubbed his hands against each other, leaning toward the fire. "I have to admit, Shino… I…always worried she'd turned to you if she ever stopped liking Naruto… Around you…she always had this weird smell to her. It was completely different than anything I'd ever smelled before…and I thought she liked you for the longest time. Making myself more like Naruto I could do…but…if it was _you_ she wound up falling for, I had absolutely no chance…" He scratched one of the triangles disappearing into the red, _red_ blush on his cheeks.

"I had actually given up hope by the time Hinata told me. I was just fighting to act like I always had around her, trying to lie to myself and tell myself she was only a friend. So…" He chuckled. "…when she suddenly got so forward and asked if I liked her, I forgot to breathe and I passed out… I was just so _dizzy_ with happiness. I almost told her no so I'd protect my heart from what I worried would be rejection, but…" He was practically beaming when he looked over at his friend. "…But when I saw the look in her eyes and smelled the adoration on her, I got so happy I couldn't even say it. And then I fainted on the spot, just like _she_ always used to do!" He rubbed his cheeks as they darkened further. "Man, that was so _embarrassing_!"

Shino snorted and Kiba looked at him eagerly. "I know! It's hilarious when I look back on it now… She's the only girl who could ever make me weak in the knees, Shino! She might not be a skinny blonde like Ino or an athletic bombshell like Sakura or TenTen…but she's _perfect_ the way she is. I don't know how she can doubt herself when she's so cute and determined and caring!"

His smile practically blinded the bug-nin, now, despite the fact that he was wearing sunglasses. "I want to be the one who shows her just how wonderful she really is."

Shino's interest piqued and he couldn't help but wonder if Kiba ever felt as conflicted as him. Kiba had it easy–his instincts and undying loyalty must've made it so easy to know exactly how he felt. Kiba was probably one of those types that knew exactly what he was feeling at all hours of the day–anger, jealousy, love, possessiveness, sadness.

"Kiba…did you…always know you loved Hinata?"

The answer he got in return caught him by surprise.

"Oh _hell_ no! Does anybody know, without a doubt, at _twelve_, that a girl who's infatuated with someone else is the one he wants? That she's the one he _loves_? Let me tell you, Shino, Naruto's the only punk lucky enough for that. For a time, Hinata was just the cute teammate on my team I wanted to protect. I felt a little more protective of her than I did you, and that was _it_. I figured the feeling was special, but only as something like I would feel for Hana. It wasn't until that mission to rescue Sasuke that I realized I cared more about her than anyone else. In my last moments of consciousness after Kankurou went and saved me, when I realized I could have _died_ and was in deep shit, before my mom, my sister, or you, or Akamaru, or even the whole reason for that mission, _Sasuke_, **she** was the one I thought about. When I woke up in the hospital, she was the _first_ person I wanted to see. I wondered if she'd see Naruto before me, and I got so _angry_ when I realized that I was probably right. And…well…that's…that's when I realized I loved her a lot more than I thought I did…"

The dog-nin leaned toward his friend, smirking. "Don't think I didn't smell TenTen on you when you caught up with us this morning…and about a month ago I caught you two behind the tree… Your clothes smelled like her and everything. Does she just like putting her hands all over you, or is there _really_ something going on between you two? You can tell me, buddy. Neji doesn't have to know a thing!"

"I…don't really know if there is," Shino admitted. "Why? I just…can't explain it… That word has been invading my thoughts for the past month… We…well…we've already slept together…"

"I knew it! You're not the prude I thought you were! You're a _playa_, Shino!"

Shino groaned audibly. "…Please _don't_ ever use that word again, Kiba… It's just…sex is a _battle_ with her. It's almost like I'm fighting when I sleep with her. So I don't…know…how I feel about it…or _her_, for that matter…"

"But you _hope_ there's more to it than sex, right? You were really depressed after Hinata said good-bye to me, but when you finally caught up to us with TenTen's scent all over you, you were really, _really_ happy."

"…Was I?" He rubbed his hand over his knee roughly, staring at the dying flame. "…I…gave her some of my kikaichuu. That's probably why I seemed happy…or something…"

Kiba smirked. "Like that weird ritual you have with your Dad?"

"N-No…" His cheeks darkened, though Kiba couldn't see it.

"That weird _bug-hug_ you tried explaining to me? Hell, Shino, I can _smell_ the attraction on you. You _really_ like her, even if you don't realize it."

Shino paused, clenching his hands together, remembering what his father had told him earlier the other day. It was as if his Dad knew more about him than even he did. Than he _realized_. It was just like Kiba said. He twisted the words around in his head awkwardly, fighting mentally on whether or not it would be wise to tell Kiba something slightly embarrassing…

"…My dad…told me something before I ran into Shikamaru and agreed to go on this mission… He said that…" He sucked in an inaudible breath he couldn't keep Kiba from hearing, and the words came bumbling out of his mouth. "…I've never fantasized about the same girl twice…"

Kiba multiplied two by ten and got twenty. "…That's why you don't want to tent with Neji. You _still_ fantasize about her, don't you??"

"…I do…" He muttered quietly, and Kiba patted the Hinata spot on Akamaru affectionately, knowingly.

The dog-nin cleared his throat and tried to hide the eagerness from his voice. He shook his head, puffing out his chest a little, ready to school _Shino_ for once. "Shino, you are not alone in that. I have fantasized about girls, too. I'll even admit I slept with a few I fantasized about–no one _you_ know, mind you–, but all the same, I slept with them. I didn't give a shit about any of them, and I never fantasized about them after sleeping with them. There's an unspoken guy rule, Shino–if you fantasize about a girl after you sleep with them, there's something special about her that holds your interest. Whether the sex is more satisfying with her than previous flings or she's got a smokin' hot bod or a brain that could put Shikamaru's to shame or the most adorable sex laugh in the world, there is something about her that keeps you drawn to her, like a moth to a flame." He looked at Shino, hoping the bug-nin would understand _that _imagery. "A moth to a flame."

Shino looked up, staring at the stars peeking through the trees and the quarter moon hanging low in the sky, nearly impossible to see through the treetops. That was the problem–moths died when lured to a flame. It messed with their bitty bug minds, making them think it was the guiding moon they relied on for direction. When they finally discovered it was a fake, it was too late and they got burned.

So what was TenTen? The moon…or a flame?

They were silent for the rest of their watch, and when Neji finally climbed out of his tent and didn't even look the slightest bit tired, they both felt something creep up their spines–akin to the feeling they got before a fight was about to break out. The Hyuuga crawled toward the fire shamelessly, refusing to look at them, and both were surprised by the first words out of his mouth–

"I'm not pleased with _you_ being the one my cousin cares so much about…but I suppose she could do a lot worse."

Before the two could even ask, Neji cleared his throat and leaned closer to the dying flame. "I suppose…if you've loved her as long as you say you have…I can overlook the fact that you've slept with other girls…" He finally gave Kiba a simpering look. "I won't speak a word of it to her, Inuzu–eh, _Kiba_."

Kiba gave him a wide smile, patting the Hinata spot again before man and man's best friend practically leapt into their tent, giddy with the news. Shino, on the other hand, cursed mentally, feeling horridly uncomfortable and not even sleepy. A shadow played on Neji's face, flickering back and forth across his cheeks, and the Hyuuga's white and–as his father often said–lifeless-looking eyes looked even creepier than they normally did. It was all Shino could to do stifle the shudder threatening to rock him to the core.

The Hyuuga's voice was low, bitter. It didn't hold the same anger one would hold if said as a threat, in bad blood. No, it almost seemed like a warning, almost desperate.

"Watch out, Shino. Do you want to know why you're so attracted to her? It's because she's a praying mantis in female form." He looked over at the other young man, eyes looking beyond the sunglasses, as if looking into his very soul. He shook his head, looking away. "No…that's not the right comparison…"

For a split second, Shino thought Neji would leave it at that, but that was not the case. Those eyes turned back to him, locking with his and holding him petrified to his spot on the rock he'd decided to use as a make-shift chair. He couldn't even bring himself to breathe under that intense gaze.

"She will be your ruin, Shino, just as she's been the ruin to any clan member she's set her sights on. You are not a moth, and she is not a flame. If you want a more accurate comparison…

"You are a _fly_, and she is a Venus Fly Trap."

When Shino finally managed to slow his mind down to a halt and let sleep take him four hours before sunrise, his sleep was fitful and plagued with dreams.

–––––––––––––––––––

He could feel it. He was sure it was driving Kiba crazy, since even he could _hear_ the increase in insect life the farther into Marsh Country they traveled. The kikaichuu in him were going absolutely crazy, and he was having a hard time concentrating on just _walking_. So many bugs; he wanted to collect them so badly… It seemed that, with every step, insects would fly into his face–everyone was having that problem. Neji was having the worst luck of them all, slapping at his arms almost constantly at the amount of mosquitoes biting into him. He was alike a PMSing girl traveling through a swamp–they were attracted to him like his blood was pure sugar. He'd always thought fondly of mosquitoes being the only openly-lesbian insects, but it seemed Neji was proving his joke-theory wrong.

"You can _do_ something about this, _can't_ you?" The Hyuuga finally managed to grit through clenched teeth, voicing the same question on everyone's mind. "The second we get to that merchant's place, I'm bathing in _so_ much milk!!"

Shino rolled his eyes. "Bathing in milk will only make the other insects like you more, Neji. You should invest in ointment your next trip out here." Neji gave him a look that clearly shouted he was never coming back here even if he were driven out of Konoha and every other country in the world, but Shino ignored the look and continued with a sigh. "But yes, I can do something about all of the bug life. Just a moment."

The young men all stopped and crowded around the bug-nin as he cleared his throat, hands out, palms facing toward the ground. He murmured under his breath and two swarms of kikaichuu left his hands, dispersing and flying out into the forest.

"There," he finally said. "There shouldn't be any insects bothering us anymore."

They trekked onward, each pleasantly surprised by the severe decrease in number of bugs crossing their paths. Shino glared, but continued without another comment.

They all could've rolled in Kiba's piss and gotten the same effect. Actually, the mosquitoes were still biting, just a bit less. If Neji had rolled around in _Akamaru's_ piss, they would've left him alone entirely. Maybe he should've told them all that… It'd be quite humorous if they actually decided to try it…

_Why_ was he so pissy? He actually _liked_ stumbling across new species of insects, damn it. …That probably wasn't the only reason, but he refused to think about her.

–––––––––––––––––

They finally arrived to their destination, and the guards at the gate were more numerous than the number at the daimyou's fortress. The young men all exchanged looks, all sharing the same thought–

Whoever this girl was, she was spoiled.

The two guards at the gate eyed Akamaru warily, and one of the guards shoved Shikamaru back a few steps when he approached.

"State your business," he said, clearly cautious. He eyed them all suspiciously, and the young men all exchanged wary looks again. Usually when they were called out to places like this, in situations like this, they were welcomed with eager arms. Why were they being suspected of anything?

Shikamaru frowned, trying not to show any doubt in his mind, trying to look the man in the eye–if he got it wrong, they'd assume he was lying. "We are ninja from Konoha. We're here on orders from the head of the family, in regards to his daughter…"

Both guards exchanged looks for a change, and one of the men pointed to the headbands they were all wearing. "True enough. Konoha headbands."

Both guards stepped away from the gate, bowing their heads. A guide grabbed Shikamaru as they walked in, ready to lead them to the main building, where the head of the house was located.

The compound was big and would put the Hyuuga compound to shame. Neji was staring at the place, secretly plotting to try moving here. He'd be treated like a king, he would. They reached the main building, and something snapped in the dog-nin. He grabbed Shino's sleeves, eyes widening.

"I can smell an Inuzuka here."

Shino rolled his eyes. "You _have_ been smelling pretty rank lately, Kiba. Are you sure you aren't smelling yourself?"

"No," he hissed desperately. "You know I'm used to my own smell. This one is definitely older than me. I can't put my finger on it. Why would an Inuzuka be all the way out here? This has missing-nin written all over it, Shino."

Shikamaru looked back at them, pausing for a brief moment and going immediately toward Kiba. He'd heard, and he was on a need-to-know basis. "Kiba, are you absolutely _sure_ about this? Your nose _is_ going to be a bit muted because this entire region has smells that are abnormally strong…"

Kiba was slightly offended at being under-estimated, and wound up growling the words out. "I'm absolutely _sure_ of this. Everything else is a big blur to me, but that much I _know_. There is an Inuzuka here and it's _not_ me, and it's _not_ just something I'm smelling on Akamaru, damn it."

"Where?"

"Throughout these halls. _Everywhere_! It's strongest down _that_ hallway," he exclaimed, pointing to a hallway toward their right. Shikamaru looked down it, vaguely making out the shape of a girl around their age, but he shook his head.

"We'll have to investigate later, Kiba. We need to get going." He looked toward Shino, nodding his head in his direction. "Shino, come on." As he passed the other two members stopped before them, he told them to get their asses moving as well. Their guide was waiting at the end of the hall, something in his eyes clearly stating that they'd have to do some investigating to get some answers. Whoever was the head of the house would not be cooperative with them.

The thought sent their nerves on edge, and they all briefly wondered if they were even safe here.

––––––––––––––––––––

The head of the house was old and warty, and it was difficult to comprehend that he was the _father_ of the girl they'd be using as bait in their attempt to find the mercenaries' hide-out. As they all approached and went to their knees, bowing their heads to the floor, the man coughed lightly.

"Ah, so you are the Konoha ninja the Hokage sent me… Well, you've had some slight briefing over your mission here, but allow me to fill you in to the details. The reason _why_ we have changed strategies is that her father has been severely injured. I am her grandfather, and have been put in charge while my son is resting. She is roughly your age, and you'll have to forgive her if she seems unwilling to do anything. She has…been _spoiled_ due to the money my son had grown into with his extensive trading…"

The young men all groaned audibly, not wanting to deal with some spoiled bitch who would most likely treat them like common filth. He was far more willing to disclose information than they thought previously, so at least they had some help _there_.

"I'm sure the guards gave you a rough time at the gate. You'll have to forgive them. One of the mercenaries had a dog with them, and now they've become a little less trusting of the animals."

Kiba squeezed his knees, feeling something like dread and victory all at once. One of the Inuzuka clan _was_ there, and it seemed like when all of this was over, they will have gotten rid of yet another missing-nin from Konoha. He was just upset over what that would mean–killing the dog-nin meant the nin-dog would have to be killed, too, killing someone from his own _clan_. Even if the bastard was a missing-nin, it was slightly upsetting to know another clan-member had fallen–evil or not.

"Of course, we still don't know who is trying to kidnap my daughter, and we'll be hoping to get rid of the mercenaries to move on to finding out just who is behind the kidnapping." The old man finally turned to Shikamaru. "You will be staying in our guest rooms, along with your teammates. If you need any help with anything, feel free to ask me. You'll have to forgive the staff here: they've all become quite irritable after my granddaughter started expecting too much from them…"

They were all silent for a moment, and Shikamaru finally said the words they'd been hoping to save for last. As he spoke, he couldn't keep the twitch out of his eye and the shudder down his spine.

"If you don't mind me asking, sir, we would like to…meet your granddaughter…"

They expected her to be sort of like Ino and just as bad when the head of the house sent for her, but they never expected her to _look_ like Ino and be a _thousand_ times worse. Her long gown trailed behind her, and Kiba immediately stiffened as she walked angrily past to the front. She stomped her foot on the ground and glared at all of them. Her hair was long and blonde and far more well-kept than Ino's. Shikamaru and Chouji stiffened immediately, knowing they'd be haunted still.

"I told you, old man, I don't need protection! Sensei's been teaching me enough combat to protect myself, alright!?" She sized them up, her eyes lingering on Kiba and Akamaru longer than she would have liked. "…Konoha nin _again_… They're all useless, old man. They failed us the last two times, so why send for more!?" She barely had time to complain about the sorry state they looked before Kiba shot to his feet.

"Listen, girly, we're here to _kill_ all of the mercenaries hired to kidnap you, not protect a spoiled little bitch like you! God damn it, and you're wanted for _ransom_!? Who the fuck could stand being around you longer than–"

"How _dare_ you talk to me like that, you **dog**!!"

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME!?"

Shino immediately stood, grabbing both Kiba and Akamaru. The other men soon joined in as she burst out laughing, and Kiba growled back at them. "Let me at her! I'm going to kill her! I'm _seriously going to kill her_!!! You all can't deny you want to do it, too!! I say we just skip the mercenaries and go straight to the damn problem!!! She has Inuzuka _all_ over her!!"

The entire room went silent, and she pursed her lips together, looking at him condescendingly. "Inuzuka? What on _earth_ are you talking about?"

He struggled free and pointed, holding firm. Akamaru's hair bristled and the nin-dog immediately started to growl. Kiba glared daggers at her, sniffing the air again. "You heard me. There's an Inuzuka with the mercenaries, and you _reek_ of Inuzuka! I'll bet you're the one behind this! You're probably wanting _more_ money so you can run off with some boyfriend or something equally bitchy!! _You're_ the problem!!"

She looked horribly offended, and she walked over, slapping him across the face. "Don't you _dare _speak to _me_ like that, you commoner!"

Kiba grabbed her wrist, twisting it around her back before his teammates could stop him.

"And don't you _dare_ speak to me like you're a fucking _princess_, you spoiled little bitch."

––––––––––––––––––

Shikamaru fell back onto his futon, staring up at the ceiling in slight aggravation. That did not go well at _all_. The guards all leapt to help her, and in the end they wound up tackling Kiba to the ground. The only upside about the situation was the fact that the head of the house didn't take as kindly to her attitude as her father did, and he quickly remedied the situation and put both squabblers in their places. Chouji stepped into the room and sat down beside him, munching on chips thoughtfully. Shikamaru groaned.

"This is horrendous. She's _not_ going to like the idea of Shino's bugs all over her…and with Kiba arguing with her, our trump card has become useless."

"…Yes, but it's not a complete loss. You'd considered not even taking Kiba on this mission, but now that you have, his nose has come in handy. He even smells an Inuzuka here and that the smell is all over the daughter, too. This is more help than anything. So what if we can't get Kiba convince her to go along with it? At least we now know–"

"Do you _see_ the severity of what Kiba told us, Chouji? It doesn't matter if we get someone else to convince her. If she really _is_ in league with the mercenaries, she won't agree to our plan even if we got someone to _sleep_ with her for it."

Chouji frowned, dread settling in the pit of his stomach. This had failed mission written all over it. He hated failed missions–someone always died or came _insanely_ close to it on them, at least in the ones he'd ever been a part of. He sighed, scratching at his face and reaching into his bag, grabbing a handful of chips to munch on.

"…But," he said between bites, "there's one thing I don't get…"

Shikamaru looked up at Chouji, staring at him, voicing a sound that resembled a question. "Mnh?" What came out of Chouji's mouth next caused the shadow-nin to sit up straight.

"She said…she was learning combat."

The genius's breathing hitched, and he couldn't _believe_ he hadn't caught that as strange earlier. Chouji continued to speak everything that came to mind and rubbed his hands together.

"I know I'm not that bright when it comes to other places…but Marsh Country doesn't _have_ any shinobi villages, right? I mean…that's why we come down here so often on missions… Since that's the case…who is teaching her combat?"

It wasn't a sound theory–after all, people moved around to different countries all the time–, but with Kiba's nose pointing toward an Inuzuka missing-nin and her having that suspicious scent all over her, it was _definitely_ something looking into. Shikamaru seized Chouji and gave him a big kiss on the cheek, shooting upward and flying from the room.

"You're a _genius_, Chouji!!"

As the shadow-nin darted out of the room, Chouji grumbled, shoving his hand into his bag and finding nothing but crumbs at the bottom. His cheeks went slightly pink and he shuddered. He frowned, lifting the bag up and pouring the crumbs into his mouth. He looked back up at the door and swallowed, finally speaking.

"Sometimes I wonder who it is you really like, Shikamaru," he said to no one in particular. "Sheesh. You better have been telling the truth when you said you weren't attracted to me, damn it."

–––––––––––––––––––––

In the dense underbrush of the forest surrounding the massive compound, nestled into the foliage and staying patiently, there sat a jet black dog with greying fur, looking somewhat blue with the blend of contrasting shades. A scar ran in line with its side, as if someone had tried to cut it open at one point during a battle.

A young man walked into the gardens closest to the walls surrounding the compound, looking up at the sky and the birds flying overhead. He let the breeze blow through his long hair and gave a rather bitter sigh. "I wonder how TenTen is doing," the young man said with concern. "She's been acting so terrible the last few weeks, more vulnerable than I've ever seen her…"

After a brief moment, he turned his eyes to the forest for a brief moment, watching a bird land at the tip of a tree. Almost immediately afterward, he turned around and began walking away from the wall, back toward the koi pond lined with rocks–but not before the man in the tree caught a flash of white, blind-looking, all-seeing eyes.

His lips curled into a toothy smirk, his voice low and rippling with satisfaction.

"A Hyuuga, is it? I'll have to be sure to keep him from seeing me before I take them out."

He leapt down out of the trees and let out a cry that mimicked a hawk's screech. The dog did as it was told and jumped to its feet, dashing deeper into the forest. As the man made his way back toward the compound, he counted them down on his fingers, mentally taking them out in his head.

"The Inuzuka will be easy and that dog of his even more so, but I'm surprised they sent someone like _him_ on a mission like this. He seems good with that nose of his… If I'd known they'd send an Inuzuka, I would've kept my hands to myself…"

He cracked his knuckles, grinning ear-to-ear. "An Akimichi and a Nara. Those should be a bit easier to fool for the time being. They both don't seem very bright…but damn. That other one _must_ be an Aburame. He looks so much like Shibi-san only all covered up. It's been a while since I went with that lucky bastard on a mission. Luckily he let me take a gander at those secret little weaknesses of his during the fight we got into. I can easily take this punk out of the picture before dealing with the ones less vulnerable. I wonder how I'll keep myself hidden around him in the mean-time…"

–––––––––––––––––––––––

Shikamaru stormed into the room across the hall, where Akamaru would be rooming with Kiba and Shino, only to find the very same shinobi sitting on the floor, playing what appeared to be a game of slaps. Shino was losing, horribly, judging by how red his hands were and how unscathed Kiba's were. Kiba snickered.

"Shino, why do you insist on playing this? Just give up. Some things you just can't win!"

Shino flipped his hands around, and Kiba swept them out almost an entire second before it happened, as if he knew ahead of time. It was the kikaichuu inside, swarming faster with the rush of adrenaline, of the young man's hands that made it so easy to tell when he was about to make his move, Shikamaru figured. Kiba lowered his hands and Shino grumbled, trying for another round.

"Who is training Suzume-san?"

The young men both turned to stare at Shikamaru, puzzled expressions on their faces. The genius's jaw was clenched, face near-white, eyes alarmingly awake for his normal lack-lackluster demeanor. Kiba actually looked as if the genius had just struck him hard in the jaw, and he stiffened.

"What did you say, Chief?"

Shikamaru bent over, hands going to his knees, before sliding down next to them, leaning toward Shino. "Suzume-san, the girl we're here for. This isn't a shinobi village and the nearest is days away. She said she was learning combat from someone. That only leaves us to figure out _whom_."

Kiba swore, jumping to conclusions yet again. "She's in league with them! I'll bet it's the Inuzuka I keep smelling around here! She's the one that hired the mercenaries to–"

"Kiba, we have no proof of that," Kiba stated. "What if her father hired a ninja who knew hand-to-hand combat to help her out? That certainly seems like the case with her. After all, she brought it up around her grandfather, so it's certainly not something happening in secret. What would a missing-nin have to gain by putting themselves out in the open like this in a village Konoha-nin go to for missions often?"

"Yes, but–"

"Shino's right, Kiba. That's why _he's_ going to investigate her teacher, and _you're_ going to investigate the hallway you smelled your clansman in the strongest, alright? You can check it out with Neji."

"Why do I have to investigate with _Neji_?"

"Because both of your senses are so acute. I know you two don't get along, but really _try_. Make sure you don't rely too much on your nose when you investigate that hallway, though. Let Neji give the hallway as many once-overs he needs, got it? Also, it's because we promised to make sure Neji sealed your chakra any time you came across Suzume-san."

"That's what you get for lashing out at her," Kiba smirked. "You get placed on a leash."

"GofuckyourselfShino."

Shikamaru sighed, watching them, going by how _he_ felt at the moment. He was already drained, and all because Suzume was even worse than Ino and Temari combined–all spoiled and demanding and stuck-up and frightening at once. He rubbed the back of his head, bobbing up and down in his squat a little. "It's been a long day, so we can start our investigation in the morning if you'd prefer…"

Kiba stared at the leader of their group before looking back to his and Kiba's hands, still engaged in a battle of slaps–Kiba only ever brought up that infernal game unless he had so much on his mind he thought he'd explode and _he_ only ever agreed to it when he was tired and bored. And so, the dog-nin sighed, smiling sheepishly. "Yeah…we kind of _would_ like to relax first…"

"Alright. I'll leave you both to your game, then. I'm off to find a shogi-player around here." Shikamaru nodded, glancing at Kiba out of the corner of his eye and giving Kiba a hearty pat on the back. That cue did not go unnoticed, and while Kiba was distracted by the pat, Kiba flipped his hands over, smacking his palms into the backs of Kiba's hands. Kiba yelped as Shikamaru walked off with a grin on his face and shot up.

"Hey! That's playing dirty!"

"One must be prepared with an ace in the hole no matter what the situation, pupsy-wupsy," Kiba said with a smirk.

"You and your stupid…stupid aces and…and…and your _holes_!! Go**fuck**yourselfShino!!!" And then, as an afterthought, he added, "And stop calling me pupsy-wupsy! That's a total breach of your character, you _freak_!!"

With that the dog-nin stormed out of the room, finding Chouji in the kitchen. The bigger ninja was chatting with the servants as they prepared the meal for dinner that day, and when Kiba arrived, the two decided to do some…_investigating_…of the fridge.

––––––––––––––––––

Morning came quicker than any of them thought possible. Shino woke up and rubbed the hood covering his head. A quick glance around the room told him everyone else had woken up a bit earlier, and it seemed as if Kiba had already gone on his mission of investigating the hallway with Neji.

He sighed, putting his hands over his face, rubbing the layers of cloth into his face. His dreams had been plagued by nightmares again, nightmares of a different nature. He was bleeding all over the ground, panting for breath in a forest somewhere. The others were looking for him and a man stood over him, his facial features eluding him now that he'd woken, and laughed to himself. His blood covered the man's hands, and he couldn't shake the feeling that the man was familiar.

"Shino, you're awake, pal!"

His eyes turned to see Kiba sliding the door open, a few fish rolls in his hands. "I brought you breakfast. No way I'd eat this nasty crap," the dog-nin chuckles as he deposited the fish into Shino's lap. Shino took the food and ate it eagerly, and Kiba took his spot next to him.

"Listen, Shino."

"Mhn?"

"…About that dream…"

"Wha–" His face paled and he realized he'd probably been talking in his sleep again. He bowed his head, rubbing the cloth covering his hair. "Yes…the dream… I'm…I'm sorry if I worried you. It's really nothing."

"…Oh…y-yeah…" Kiba looked away quickly, his face flushing bright red. "Th-That dream… D-D-Don't worry, pal. It didn't sound so terrible, so I'm not worried."

Shino groaned. "We're on two different pages, Kiba. Let's not even bring up what we really mean, since it's obvious neither of us is bothered by any dreams we had last night."

"No, it _is_ important, Shino." He gave Shino a stern look, his lips going into a tight line. "Hinata is your teammate and all, and I don't want you to feel left out now that we've got this relationship going. I know how jealous and moody and sulky you get…"

"I'm not…" Shino glared and looked away indignantly. "I'm not moody or jealous."

"…Riiight. But, Shino, Shikamaru's been wanting to talk to you since you woke up. It'd be best not to keep him waiting."

With that, Shino took his leave groggily. Shikamaru wasn't really telling him anything important–just little details he'd gathered playing shogi with one of the groundskeepers. There were a few things of interest–meat had gone missing over the course of a few months since Suzume started getting the threats on her life. It was stolen, without fail, almost every day and the day the Konoha-nin showed up was the first exception. Everything else was useless information, as far as Shino was concerned. The only other piece of information that was remotely important was one they'd already figured out–a big black dog had been sighted in the forest on occasion.

He sighed and took his leave from Shikamaru, walking back to his room to mentally prepare himself. He had to be quick on his feet and sharp with his eyes. If this man was really teaching her how to feet, he'd probably have to pull out some moves of his own, being a ninja.

The walk around the compound was a long and scenic one, but he was far too stressed to enjoy it. Every once in a while, a bug would flit by and he'd turn his head to look at it, but he couldn't inspect it. He had more important things to do. Finally, when he heard a loud scream from around a corner, he knew he'd reached the right place.

At an alcove near the northwest corner of the compound, he found the two training–Suzume-san and her sensei. Her sensei was tall and dark, very handsome, and had a calm smile. Upon hearing him approach, the teacher blocked one of her punches and halted her. He approached Shino, smiling all the while.

"May I help you?"

Shino cleared his throat and shoved his hands in his pockets. "I'm Shino Aburame. I'm one of the ninja sent here to protect your student and discover who's behind all of these kidnappings."

The man's eyes flickered–there was something so much like Kiba's to them–, but he didn't return the handshake. From what Shino could see, the man couldn't have been of the Inuzuka clan because the markings on his cheeks weren't there, so why had he gotten a distinct sense of familiarity from them?

"I am Kuro. I'm not graced enough to have a surname." He crossed his hands over his chest and glanced back at Suzume, telling her to leave. When she did, he looked back at Shino. "So, what brings you here? You can't possibly be wanting any training. By the looks of you, you're absolutely _perfect_ and without fault." His voice was snippy, and Shino couldn't figure out why he suddenly became angry.

With another dark look, Kuro continued to speak. "You're of the Aburame clan, right? I passed through Konoha once and I saw a few members of the Aburame clan fight in an exam there. You fight with bugs, correct?"

"…Kikaichuu, actually."

"Yes, so…_what brings you here_, Bug-boy?"

Shino's eye twitched though the other man couldn't see it, and he cleared his throat. "We-Well, I'm here because we suspect there might be a missing-nin involved. You see, one of our teammates is from a clan that specializes in dogs, and he happens to smell another clan member here, particularly from Suzume-san. A dog was reported seen over the duration of the attacks on her, and we suspect the two might be linked…"

"And…why are you asking me?" The man's eyes were wide, as if he couldn't believe they'd gotten so many theories moving in such a short amount of time.

Shino shoved his hands in his pockets. "We thought it was strange for someone who knows the ninja arts to be teaching her when there isn't a shinobi village around for miles."

"I moved here from the Mist village. And you still haven't explained how a missing-nin connects with her teacher."

"…We smelled a missing-nin on her, and it's only natural for you to have touched her during sparring. We're just trying to take as many leads as we can at the moment. It's not that we directly suspect _you_."

"That's how it sounds…" Kuro quirked a brow and glanced back at Suzume, the blood draining from his face. "And…how many leads are you taking, exactly?"

"One of the hallways smelled strongest like Kiba's clan, so Kiba and one of our other teammates are going to go check it out… It's nothing big. If there's nothing there, there's nothing to worry about."

Suzume, on the other hand, thought otherwise. "Wh-Wh-What? A hallway? What are they investigating!?"

Shino's face fell. "Just a hallway. Nothing more."

"Where!?"

"Toward the entrance of the compound. One of the first hallways in the first building that we passed toward the meeting room."

"That's where my room is! Don't tell me that filthy mutt is going to be going through my room and smelling my things!! Shishou, do something about this! That is a direct violation of my personal space!! What if the mutt discovers that we've–" He slammed a hand over her mouth, cutting her off immediately.

"Suzume, I pray you hold your tongue before you say more than you'd like to have heard."

Shino looked between the two, putting two and two together to get four, and leaned over toward them. "We're only going off of smell for his clan. Neither of you are in his clan, so he's not going to smell any of that. If you two are involved…your secret is safe with me, but trust me–Kiba's not going to smell anything like that."

––––––––––––––––––

"I smelled passion and sweat and shame. In her room. She's sexually active, that girl. The Inuzuka stench is _everywhere_ and we even followed it out the _window_ into the forest! She's obviously involved with an Inuzuka!!" Kiba tugged on his hair and looked at Neji, hoping the Hyuuga would back him up. His eyes must've seen _something_ in that room, after all!

Neji just held up a hair brush, covered with not only long blonde hair but short black hair as well. He cleared his throat. "This black hair is too short to belong to anyone at the compound. Not only that, but it has the same feel to it as _dog_ hair. It's safe to say she's involved in some way."

All six of them were sitting in Shikamaru and Chouji's room, all in a circle and discussing the situation. Chouji seemed uninterested, already having helped out his investigation with the missing meat the previous day. Shikamaru _seemed_ out of it, but they all knew he was picking up all the clues and organizing them mentally. Kiba had taken to standing beside Neji, and Shino sat there silently.

It was Shino that refused to believe Kiba and Neji's conclusions. "Wait, that's impossible. We already know she's a dog-lover, so how can you already _assume_ that hair belongs to the missing-nin's dog? And it _can't_ be that she's involved with a missing-nin, because she is involved with her instructor, and her instructor isn't in the Inuzuka clan."

Kiba gave him a long, long look before he leaned toward him and took a sniff. "You don't smell like another human, Shino."

"And?"

He glared. "You introduced yourself to the instructor, right? Surely you shook his hand!"

"I offered, but he refused."

Kiba pointed at him, accusing. "See! He refused! He didn't want his scent on you because he knew I'd recognize it immediately! It's obvious! That girl is the one behind all of this! She's the one who wants all of this money! She wouldn't sleep with a missing-nin unless she wanted him to cooperate with her! He's probably more than willing because he wants her money, too! I'll bet that's it! He really just wants her money so he's lying to her!"

Without meaning to, Shino found himself shouting. "You don't sleep with someone for fun, Kiba! That's barbaric of you to think that! She's involved with her instructor! That's _it_!!"

A silence settled between them and he sunk down lower into himself, fuming. Kiba's eyebrows knitted together, and he started twisting his fingers together anxiously. "…Sh-Shino…there's really no call to get upset. I'm just running my mouth like always…"

Shino groaned, wiping at his face. "Look…I just don't want to think that it's possible for someone to be that cruel, alright… Maybe he is, maybe he isn't. All I know is that her instructor _couldn't_ have been an Inuzuka. He didn't have the markings you have, Kiba."

Kiba swallowed as his eyes widened. "…That's not true, Shino…" He fisted for his hair, breaking out into a sweat. "…I…I only have these markings on my face because I'm from the main family. Members of the central branch of the clan get tattooed at a young age with these markings, as do women who marry into the family. That's why my mother and sister have these markings." He stared at the floor, sweating profusely.

"Shino, don't give me this bullshit on him being in love with her. It's only going to make it that much harder for me to kill him."

––––––––––––––––

Amid the make-shift dojo that had been made for the heiress's new shishou, they stood there in an awkward embrace, staring at the wall and everywhere else but at each other. The grain of the wood felt smooth beneath his hands, and he rubbed them against the wood, taking a deep breath of her hair. It seemed to calm him, just as it seemed to calm her.

She started to tremble, bringing her eyes to look into his, searching desperately for any sort of fear in them. As much as she wanted him to take care of it, she wanted to see it bothering him, too. For him to feel anxious over their relationship being discovered.

"Shishou…ah, Kuro…wh-what do we do? They have to know by now, right? I mean, _is_ it true? Are you what that one dog kept calling–"

He growled at her, looking away darkly. "I am, and don't speak about him so disrespectfully. He's still the heir to my clan, even if I was expelled. Don't call him a dog or a mutt or anything you wouldn't call me, got it? Just give me some time to think."

"You're still loyal, aren't you?" Her face fell, and her jaw dropped. "He's not in your clan and yet you're still loyal!! What are we going to do!? If my grandfather finds out I'm trying to run away with his money after these false ransoms, I'll be kicked out of the family!! I'll be just like _you_!! Don't tell me you're still loyal to your family after we've come this far!!"

"It's in my nature! I can't do anything about that! Do you know how rare it is for one of my clan members to actually become thrown out of the family!? They have to fuck up _real_ bad!! Their blood doesn't run through my veins purely, I'm the most watered down out of all of them, that's why! The branch I'm in is weak! That's why my loyalty to them is easily swayed!"

"Weak!? What are you going to do!? That mutt is going to–"

He slammed his hand into her cheek, sending her falling out of his arms. He glared at her, standing up. "I told you not to call him that. You, a clanless brat, could _never_ understand. It's not that _simple_. I can't just…I can, but I _can't_. He's the alpha male, see. Just looking at the intensity in his eyes is enough to make me go weak in the knees and cripple me into submission. But it's okay because I'm actually stronger than most of the members in my family. As weak as my blood is, I'm still extremely strong, and I have more experience than that mere pup back there. I'll win for sure."

She whimpered as she rubbed her cheek, the tears forming in her eyes. He was just scared over this whole ordeal. That was why he was getting mad at her, surely.

"You hear that, Su-chan? I'm going to kill him in the end. I'll kill all of them. If you want any of this to work, I'm going to need your help. You need to cripple your grandfather like you did your father. I don't care how, just make sure no one knows it is you. Hire those thugs to do it if you have to. After that, I want to get one of them alone."

"H-How are we going to get one of them alone?"

"You're going to offer yourself as bait."

"But…but where will I go? It's not like there are any missing-nin here with a hide-out or anything…"

"You leave that to me. I'll take care of it."

"And…the do–the one you want to get alone…? Y…You'll be able to kill him even though he's in the main branch, right?"

"I'm not going after him. I'm going after the one we met today. Shino Aburame, the son of my former mentor." He looked back at her before kissing the bruise on her cheek and helping her up. "When all of this is done, we'll have the money, won't we?"

She nodded, embracing him in a tight hug. "We'll have _all_ of it and you won't have to travel any more and we can be together."

"Good. I'm tired of being alone."


End file.
